LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  OF 


SftN  DJEQO 


Revolutionary  Reader 


REMINISCENCES  AND 
INDIAN    LEGENDS 


COMPILED      BY 

SOPHIE     LEE     FOSTER 

STATE  REGENT 
DAUGHTERS  OF  THE  AMERICAN   REVOLUTION  OF  GEORGIA 


ATLANTA.      GA.: 

BYRD    PRINTING    COMPANY 
1913 


COPYRIGHTED  191S 

BY 
SOPHIE  LEE  FOSTER 


D EDICA TION 

As  my  work  has  been  a  labor  of  love,  I  therefore  affection- 
ately dedicate  this  book  to  the  Daughters  of  the 
American  Revolution  of  Georgia. 


September  4,  1913. 

MRS.  SHEPPARD  "W.  FOSTER, 
Atlanta,  Georgia. 

My  Dear  Mrs.  Foster : — To  say  that  I  am  delighted  with 
your  Revolutionary  Reader  is  to  state  the  sheer  truth  in 
very  mild  terms.  It  is  a  marvel  to  me  how  you  could  gather 
together  so  many  charmingly  written  articles,  each  of  them 
illustrative  of  some  dramatic  phase  of  the  great  struggle 
for  independence.  There  is  much  in  this  book  of  local 
interest  to  each  section.  There  is  literally  nothing  which 
does  not  carry  with  it  an  appeal  of  the  most  profound 
interest  to  the  general  reader,  whether  in  Georgia  or  New 
England.  You  have  ignored  no  part  of  the  map.  I  con- 
gratulate you  upon  your  wonderful  success  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  your  Revolutionary  Reader.  It  is  marvelously  rich 
in  contents  and  broadly  American  in  spirit. 
Sincerely  your  friend, 
(Signed)  LUCIAN  LAMAR  KNIGHT. 

September  8,  1913. 

MRS.  S.  W.  FOSTER, 

711  Peachtree  Street. 

I  like  very  much  your  plan  of  a  Revolutionary  reader. 
1  hope  it  will  be  adopted  by  the  school  boards  of  the  various 
states  as  a  supplementary  reader  so  that  it  may  have  a  wide 
circulation. 

Yours  sincerely, 

JOSEPH  T.  DERRY. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 
America 11 

Washington's  Name 12 

Washington's  Inauguration    13 

Important  Characters  of  the  Revolutionary  Period  in  Ameri- 
can History 14 

Battle  of  Alamance 20 

Battle  of  Lexington 22 

Signers  of  Declaration  ....•• 35 

Life  at  Valley  Forge 37 

Old  Williamsburg    46 

Song  of  the  Revolution  52 

A  True  Story  of  the  Revolution 53 

Georgia  Poem 55 

Forts  of  Georgia 56 

James  Edward  Oglethorpe 59 

The  Condition  of  Georgia  During  the  Revolution 61 

Fort  Rutledge  of  the  Revolution  65 

The    Efforts    of    LaFayette    for    the    Cause    of    American 

Independence    72 

James  Jackson   77 

Experiences  of  Joab  Home 79 

Historical  Sketch  of  Margaret  Katherine  Barry 81 

Art  and  Artists  of  the  Revolution 84 

Uncle  Sam  Explained  Again 87 

An  Episode  of  the  War  of  the  Revolution 88 

State   Flowers    93 

Georgia  State  History,  Naming  of  the  Counties 95 

An  Historic  Tree 100 

Independence  Day , 101 

Kitty    102 

Battle  of  Kettle  Creek  108 

A  Daring  Exploit  of  Grace  and  Rachael  Martin Ill 

A  Revolutionary  Puzzle  112 

South  Carolina  in  the  Revolution  112 

Lyman  Hall   118 

A  Romance  of  Revolutionary  Times 120 


PAGE 

Fort  Motte,  South  Carolina 121 

Peter  Strozier 123 

Independence  Day 125 

Sarah  Gilliam  Williamson  127 

A  Colonial  Hiding  Place 129 

A  Hero  of  the  Revolution 131 

John  Paul  Jones  132 

The  Real  Georgia  Cracker 135 

The  Dying  Soldier 136 

When  Benjamin  Franklin  Scored 139 

A  Revolutionary  Baptising  139 

George  Walton 140 

Thomas  Jefferson 143 

Orators  of  the  American  Revolution 150 

The  Flag  of  Our  Country  (Poem)  154 

The  Old  Virginia  Gentleman 155 

When  Washington  Was  Wed  (Poem)  160 

Rhode  Island  in  the  American  Revolution 162 

Georgia  and  Her  Heroes  in  the  Revolution 168 

United  States  Treasury  Seal 173 

Willie  Was  Saved  174 

Virginia  Revolutionary  Forts  175 

Uncrowned  Queens  and  Kings  as  Shown  Through  Humorous 

Incidents  of  the  Revolution 185 

A  Colonial  Story 192 

Molly  Pitcher  for  Hall  of  Fame 195 

Revolutionary  Relics 196 

Tragedy  of  the  Revolution  Overlooked  by  Historians 197 

John  Martin  204 

John  Stark,  Revolutionary  Soldier  206 

Benjamin  Franklin  209 

Captain  Mugf  ord 211 

Governor  John  Clark  214 

Party  Relations  in  England  and  Their  Effect  on  the  American 

Revolution  221 

Early  Means  of  Transportation  by  Land  and  Water 228 

Colonel  Benjamin  Hawkins  236 

Governor  Jared  Irwin 240 

Education  of  Men  and  Women  of  the  American  Revolution. .  243 

Nancy  Hart  252 

Battle  of  Kings  Mountain  (Poem) 255 

William  Cleghorn  257 


CONTENTS  7 

PAGE 

The  Blue  Laws  of  Old  Virginia 259 

Elijah  Clark 264 

Francis  Marion 266 

Light  Horse  Harry  274 

Our  Legacy  (Poem)    276 

The  Ride  of  Mary  Slocumb 277 

The  Hobson  Sisters 284 

Washington's  March  Through  Somersett  County,  N.  J 289 

Hannah  Arnett 293 

Button  Gwinnett    298 

Forced  by  Pirates  to  Walk  The  Plank 300 

Georgia  Women  of  Early  Days 301 

Robert  Sallette 308 

General  LaFayette's  Visit  to  Macon 312 

Yes !  Tomorrow's  Flag  Day  (Poem)   317 

Flag  Day    319 

End  of  the  Revolution  .  328 


Indian  Legends 

Counties  of  Georgia  Bearing  Indian  Names 330 

Story  of  Early  Indian  Days 331 

Chief  Van  House 332 

Indian   Tale    334 

William  White  and  Daniel  Boone 336 

The  Legend  of  Lovers'  Leap 337 

Indian  Mound    344 

Storiette  of  States  Derived  from  Indian  Names 346 

Cherokee  Alphabet   348 

The  Boy  and  His  Arrow 351 

Indian  Spring,  Georgia   353 

Tracing  The  Mclntosh  Trail 367 

Georgia  School  Song  369 


LIST  OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Facing 
Page 

Fraunces  Tavern  11 

Ruins  of  Old  Fort  at  Frederica  58 

Monument  to  Gen.  Oglethorpe 60 

Indian   Treaty   Tree    98 

The  Old  Liberty  Bell  130 

Carpenter's  Hall   170 

Monument  Site  of  Old  Cornwallis 266 

Birthplace  of  Old  Glory   318 

Chief  Vann  House   330 

Map  of  Mclntosh  Trail  366 

Map    of    Georgia,     Showing    Colonial,     Revolutionary    and 

Indian  War  Period  Forts,  Battle  Fields  and  Treaty  Spots  370 


PREFACE. 

Since  it  is  customary  to  write  a  preface,  should  any  one 
attempt  the  somewhat  hazardous  task  of  compiling  a  book, 
it  is  my  wish,  as  the  editor,  in  sending  this  book  forth  (to 
live  or  die  according  to  its  merits)  to  take  advantage  of 
this  custom  to  offer  a  short  explanation  as  to  its  mission. 
It  is  not  to  be  expected  that  a  volume,  containing  so  many 
facts  gathered  from  numerous  sources,  will  be  entirely  free 
from  criticism.  The  securing  of  material  for  compiling  this 
book  was  first  planned  through  my  endeavors  to  stimulate 
greater  enthusiasm  in  revolutionary  history,  biography  of 
revolutionary  period,  Indian  legends,  etc.,  by  having 
storiettes  read  at  the  various  meetings  of  the  Daughters  of 
the  American  Revolution,  and  in  this  way  not  only  creating 
interest  in  Chapter  work,  but  accumulating  much  valuable 
heretofore  unpublished  data  pertaining  to  this  important 
period  in  American  history;  with  a  view  of  having  same 
printed  in  book  form,  suitable  for  our  public  schools,  to  be 
known  as  a  Revolutionary  Reader. 

At  first  it  was  my  intention  only  to  accept  for  this  reader 
unpublished  storiettes  relating  to  Georgia  history,  but 
realizing  this  work  could  not  be  completed  under  this  plan, 
during  my  term  of  office  as  State  Regent,  I  decided  to  use 
material  selected  from  other  reliable  sources,  and  en- 
deavored to  make  it  as  broad  and  general  in  scope  as  pos- 
sible that  it  might  better  fulfill  its  purpose. 

To  the  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution  of  Georgia 
this  book  is  dedicated.  Its  production  has  been  a  labor  of 
love,  and  should  its  pages  be  the  medium  through  which 
American  patriotism  may  be  encouraged  and  perpetuated  I 
shall  feel  many  times  repaid  for  the  effort. 

To  the  Chapters  of  the  Daughters  of  American  Revolu- 
tion of  Georgia  for  storiettes  furnished,  to  the  newspapers 
for  clippings,  to  the  American  Monthly  Magazine  for 
articles,  to  Miss  Annie  M.  Lane,  Miss  Helen  Prescott,  Mr. 
Lucian  Knight  and  Professor  Derry,  I  wish  to  express  my 
deep  appreciation  for  material  help  given. 

SOPHIE  LEE  FOSTER. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  11 


AMERICA. 

1.  My  Country,  'tis  of  thee, 
Sweet  land  of  liberty, 

Of  thee  I  sing; 
Land  where  our  fathers  died, 
Land  of  the  pilgrims'  pride, 
From  every  mountain  side 

Let  freedom  ring. 

2.  My  native  Country,  thee, 
Land  of  the  noble  free, 

Thy  name  I  love; 
I  love  thy  rocks  and  rills, 
Thy  woods  and  templed  hills, 
My  heart  with  rapture  thrills, 

Like  that  above. 

3.  Let  music  swell  the  breeze, 
And  ring  from  all  the  trees, 

Sweet  Freedom's  song; 
Let  mortal  tongues  awake, 
Let  all  that  breathe  partake, 
Let  rocks  their  silence  break, 

The  sound  prolong. 

4.  Our  Father's  God,  to  Thee, 
Author  of  liberty, 

To  Thee  we  sing; 
Long  may  our  land  be  bright, 

With  Freedom's  holy  light, 
Protect  us  with  Thy  might, 

Great  God,  our  King! 


12  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


WASHINGTON'S  NAME. 

At  the  celebration  of  Washington's  Birthday,  Maury 
Public  School,  District  of  Columbia,  Miss  Helen  T.  Doocy 
recited  the  following  beautiful  poem  written  specially  for 
her  by  Mr.  Michael  Scanlon : 

Let  nations  grown  old  in  the  annals  of  glory 

Retrace  their  red  marches  of  conquest  and  tears, 
And  glean  with  deft  hands,  from  the  pages  of  story 

The  names  which  emblazon  their  centuried  years — 
Bring  them  forth,  ev'ry  deed  which  their  prowess  bequeathed 

Unto  them  caught  up  from  the  echoes  of  fame ; 
Yet  thus,  round  their  brows  all  their  victories  wreathed, 

They'll  pale  in  the  light  of  our  Washington's  Name ! 

Oh,  ye  who  snatched  fame  from  the  nation's  disasters 

And  fired  your  ambitions  at  glory's  red  springs, 
To  bask,  for  an  hour,  in  the  smiles  of  your  masters, 

And  flash  down  life's  current,  the  bubbles  of  kings, 
Stand  forth  with  your  blood-purchased  trappings  upon  you, 

The  need  of  your  treason,  the  price  of  your  shame, 
And  mark  how  the  baubles  which  tyranny  won  you 

Will  pale  in  the  light  of  our  Washington's  Name ! 

Parade  your  proud  trophies  and  pile  up  your  arches, 

And  flaunt  your  blood  banner,  oh,  trumpet -tongued  War ! 
But  ruin  and  woe  mark  the  lines  of  your  marches, 

While  Liberty,  captive,  is  chained  to  your  car; 
But,  lo !  in  the  west  there  flasht  out  to  defend  her 

A  sword  which  was  sheened  in  humanity's  flame, 
And  Virtue,  secure,  glass'd  her  form  in  its  splendor — 

The  splendor  which  haloes  our  Washington's  Name ! 

The  kings  whose  dread  names  have  led  captive  the  ages 

Now  sink  in  the  sands  of  their  passion  and  lust; 
Their  blood-roll  of  carnage  in  history's  pages 

Is  closed,  and  their  names  will  go  down  to  the  dust. 
But  long  as  a  banner  to  Freedom  is  flying 

No  shadow  can  rest  on  his  sunshine  of  fame, 
For  glory  has  crowned  him  with  beauty  undying, 

And  time  will  but  brighten  our  Washington's  Name ! 
— American  Monthly  Magazine. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  13 

WASHINGTON'S  INAUGURATION. 
BY  REV.  THOMAS  B.  GREGORY. 

On  April  30,  1789,  at  Federal  Hall,  George  Washington 
was  duly  inaugurated  first  President  of  the  United  States, 
and  the  great  experiment  of  self-government  on  these 
Western  shores  was  fairly  begun. 

The  beginning  was  most  auspicious.  Than  Washington 
no  finer  man  ever  stood  at  the  forefront  of  a  nation's  life. 
Of  Washington  America  is  eminently  proud,  and  of 
Washington  America  has  the  right  to  be  proud,  for  the 
' '  Father  of  His  Country ' '  was,  in  every  sense  of  the  word, 
a  whole  man.  Time  has  somewhat  disturbed  the  halo  that 
for  a  long  while  held  the  place  about  the  great  man's  head. 
It  has  been  proven  that  Washington  was  human,  and  all 
the  more  thanks  for  that.  But  after  the  closest  scrutiny, 
from  every  part  of  the  world,  for  a  century  and  a  quarter, 
it  is  still  to  be  proven  that  anything  mean,  or  mercenary,  or 
dishonorable  or  unpatriotic  ever  came  near  the  head  or 
heart  of  our  first  President. 

Washington  loved  his  country  with  a  whole  heart. 
He  was  a  patriot  to  the  core.  His  first,  last  and  only 
ambition  was  to  do  what  he  could  to  promote  the  high 
ends  to  which  the  Republic  was  dedicated.  Politics,  as 
defined  by  Aristotle,  is  the  "science  of  government." 
Washington  was  not  a  learned  man,  and  probably  knew 
very  little  of  Aristotle,  but  his  head  was  clear  and  his 
heart  was  pure,  and  he,  too,  felt  that  politics  was  the  science 
of  government,  and  that  the  result  of  the  government 
should  be  the  "greatest  good  to  the  greatest  number"  of 
his  fellow  citizens. 

From  that  high  and  sacred  conviction  Washington 
never  once  swerved,  and  when  he  quit  his  exalted  office  he 
did  so  with  clean  hands  and  unsmirched  fame,  leaving 
behind  him  a  name  which  is  probably  the  most  illustrious 
in  the  annals  of  the  race. 


14  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Rapid  and  phenomenal  has  been  the  progress  of  Wash- 
ington's country!  It  seems  like  a  dream  rather  than  the 
soundest  of  historical  facts.  The  Romans,  after  fighting 
''tooth  and  nail"  for  300  years,  found  themselves  with  a 
territory  no  larger  than  that  comprised  within  the  limits 
of  Greater  New  York.  In  124  years  the  Americans  are  the 
owners  of  a  territory  in  comparison  with  which  the  Roman 
Empire,  when  at  the  height  of  its  glory,  was  but  a  small 
affair — a  territory  wherein  are  operant  the  greatest  indus- 
trial, economic,  moral  and  political  forces  that  this  old 
planet  ever  witnessed. 


IMPORTANT  CHARACTERS  OF  THE  REVOLU- 
TIONARY PERIOD  IN  AMERICAN  HISTORY. 

To  make  a  subject  interesting  and  beneficial  to  us  we 
must  have  a  personal  interest  in  it.  This  is  brought  about 
in  three  ways :  It  touches  our  pride,  if  it  be  our  country ; 
it  excites  our  curosity  as  to  what  it  really  is,  if  it  be  history ; 
and  we  desire  to  know  what  part  our  ancestors  took  in  it, 
if  it  be  war. 

So,  we  see  the  period  of  the  Revolutionary  war  possesses 
all  three  of  these  elements ;  and  was  in  reality  the  beginning 
of  true  American  life — "America  for  Americans." 

Prior  to  this  time  (during  the  Colonial  period)  America 
was  under  the  dominion  of  the  lords  proprietors — covering 
the  years  of  1663  to  1729 — and  royal  governors — from  1729 
to  1775 — the  appointees  of  the  English  sovereign,  and 
whose  rule  was  for  self-aggrandizement.  The  very  word 
"Revolutionary"  proclaims  oppression,  for  where  there  is 
justice  shown  by  the  ruler  to  the  subjects  there  is  no  revolt, 
nor  will  there  ever  be. 

"We  usually  think  of  the  battle  of  Lexington  (April  19, 
1775,)  as  being  the  bugle  note  that  culminated  in  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  and  reached  its  final  grand 
chord  at  Yorktown,  October  19,  1781 ;  but  on  the  16th 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  15 

of  May,  1771,  some  citizens  of  North  Carolina,  finding  the 
extortions  and  exactions  of  the  royal  governor,  Tryon,  more 
than  they  could  or  would  bear,  took  up  arms  in  self-defense 
and  fought  on  the  Alamance  Eiver  what  was  in  reality  the 
first  battle  of  the  Revolution. 

The  citizens '  loss  was  thirty-six  men,  while  the  governor 
lost  almost  sixty  of  his  royal  troops.  This  battle  of  the 
Alamance  was  the  seed  sown  that  budded  in  the  Declaration 
of  Mecklenburg  in  1775,  and  came  to  full  flower  in  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  July  4,  1776. 

There  were  stages  in  this  flower  of  American  liberty 
to  which  we  will  give  a  cursory  glance. 

The  determination  of  the  colonies  not  to  purchase 
British  goods  had  a  marked  effect  on  England.  Commercial 
depression  followed,  and  public  opinion  soon  demanded 
some  concession  to  the  Americans. 

All  taxes  were  remitted  or  repealed  except  that  upon 
tea ;  when  there  followed  the  most  exciting,  if  not  the  most 
enjoyable  party  in  the  world's  history — the  "Boston  Tea 
Party,"  which  occurred  on  the  evening  of  December  16, 
1773. 

This  was  followed  in  March,  1774,  by  the  Boston  Port 
Bill,  the  first  in  the  series  of  retaliation  by  England  for 
the  "Tea  Party." 

At  the  instigation  of  Virginia  a  new  convention  of  the 
colonies  was  called  to  meet  September,  1774,  to  consider 
"the  grievances  of  the  people."  This  was  the  second 
Colonial  and  the  first  Continental  congress  to  meet  in 
America,  and  occurred  September  5,  1774,  at  Philadelphia. 
All  the  colonies  were  represented,  except  Georgia,  whose 
governor  would  not  allow  it. 

They  then  adjourned  to  meet  May  10,  1775,  after 
having  passed  a  declaration  of  rights,  framed  an  address 
to  the  king  and  people  of  England,  and  recommended  the 
suspension  of  all  commercial  relations  with  the  mother 
country. 


16 

The  British  minister,  William  Pitt,  wrote  of  that  con- 
gress: "For  solidity  of  reasoning,  force  of  sagacity  and 
wisdom  of  conclusion,  no  nation  or  body  of  men  can  stand 
in  preference  to  the  general  congress  of  Philadelphia. ' ' 

Henceforth  the  Colonists  were  knoAvn  as  "Continen- 
tals," in  contradistinction  to  the  "Royalists"  or  "Tories," 
who  were  the  adherents  of  the  crown. 

No  period  of  our  history  holds  more  for  the  student, 
young  or  old,  than  this  of  the  Revolutionary  war,  or 
possesses  greater  charm  when  once  taken  up. 

No  man  or  woman  can  be  as  good  a  citizen  without  some 
knowledge  of  this  most  interesting  subject,  nor  enjoy  so 
fully  their  grand  country! 

Some  one  has  pertinently  said  "history  is  innumerable 
biographies ; ' '  and  what  child  or  grown  person  is  there  who 
does  not  enjoy  being  told  of  some  ' '  great  person  ? ' '  Every 
man,  private,  military  or  civil  officer,  who  took  part  in  the 
Revolutionary  war  was  great! 

It  is  not  generally  known  that  the  executive  power  of 
the  state  rested  in  those  troublesome  times  in  the  county 
committees ;  but  it  was  they  who  executed  all  the  orders  of 
the  Continental  Congress. 

The  provincial  council  was  for  the  whoje  state;  the 
district  committee  for  the  safety  of  each  district,  and  the 
county  and  town  committees  for  each  county  and  town. 

It  was  through  the  thought,  loyalty  and  enduring 
bravery  of  the  men  who  constituted  these  committees,  that 
we  of  today  have  a  constitution  that  gives  us  "life,  liberty 
and  the  pursuit  of  happiness ' ' — in  whatever  manner  pleases 
us,  so  long  as  it  does  not  trespass  on  another's  well  being. 

We  do  not  give  half  the  honor  we  should  to  our  ancestry, 
who  have  done  so  much  for  us !  We  zealously  seek  and  pre- 
serve the  pedigrees  of  our  horses,  cows  and  chickens,  and 
really  do  not  know  whether  we  come  from  a  mushroom  or  a 
monkey ! 

When  we  think  of  it,  it  is  a  much  more  honorable  and 
greater  thing  to  be  a  Son  or  Daughter  of  the  American 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  17 

Revolution,  than  to  be  a  prince  or  princess,  for  one  comes 
through  noble  deeds  done  by  thinking,  justice-loving  men, 
and  the  other  through  an  accident  of  birth.  Let  us 
examine  a  little  into  a  few  of  these  "biographies"  and  see 
wherein  their  greatness  lies,  that  they  like  righteous  Abel, 
"though  dead  yet  speak." 

The  number  seven  stands  for  completeness  and  per- 
fection— let  us  see  if  seven  imaginary  questions  can  be 
answered  by  their  lives. 

James  Edward  Oglethorpe  was  born  in  1696,  and  died 
in  1785 — two  years  after  the  Revolutionary  war.  He 
planted  the  Colony  of  Georgia,  in  which  the  oppressed  found 
refuge.  He  had  served  in  the  army  of  Prince  Eugene  of 
Savoy  in  the  war  with  the  Turks.  He  founded  the  city  of 
Savannah,  Georgia.  He  exported  to  England  the  first  silk 
made  in  the  colonies,  of  which  the  queen  had  a  dress  made. 
King  George  II  gave  him  a  seal  representing  a  family  of 
silk  worms,  with  their  motto:  "Not  for  ourselves  but  for 
others."  He  forbade  the  importation  of  rum  into  the 
colony.  He  refused  the  command  of  the  British  forces 
sent  in  1775  to  reduce,  or  subdue  the  American  Colonies. 
In  this  life  told  in  seven  questions,  or  rather  answered,  we 
find  much — a  religious  man,  a  soldier,  an  architect  (of  a 
city),  one  versed  in  commerce,  a  wise  legislator  and  a  man 
who  had  the  respect  of  the  king — the  head  of  England. 

The  next  in  chronological  order  is  Benjamin  Franklin 
(for  whom  our  little  city  is  named),  born  in  1706,  died  in 
1790.  He  discovered  the  identity  of  lightning  and  elec- 
tricity, and  invented  the  lightning  rods.  He  was  an  early 
printer  who  edited  and  published  "Poor  Richard's 
Almanac."  Of  him  it  was  said,  "He  snatched  the  light- 
ning from  heaven  and  the  sceptre  from  tyrants." 

He  founded  the  first  circulating  library  in  America. 
His  portrait  is  seen  to-day  on  every  one-cent  postage 
stamp.  He  was  America's  ambassador  to  France  during 
the  Revolutionary  war. 


18  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

He  said  after  signing  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 
"We  must  all  hang  together  or  we  shall  all  hang 
separately. ' ' 

In  him,  we  find  an  inventor  and  discoverer,  an  editor 
and  author,  a  benefactor,  a  politician  and  statesman,  and 
one  whose  face  we  daily  see  on  account  of  his  greatness. 

George  Washington  was  born  1732,  and  died  1799.  He 
was  the  first  president  of  the  United  States — "The  Father 
of  His  Country,"  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  American 
forces  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  He  was  the  hero  of 
Valley  Forge,  and  the  one  to  receive  the  surrender  of  Corn- 
wallis  at  Yorktown. 

He  was  the  president  of  the  convention  that  framed  the 
United  States  constitution.  The  one  of  whom  it  was  said, 
"He  was  the  first  in  war,  the  first  in  peace,  and  the  first 
in  the  hearts  of  his  countrymen. "  It  is  his — and  his  only — 
birthday  America  celebrates  as  a  national  holiday.  Of  him 
Lord  Byron  said,  "The  first,  the  last,  and  the  best,  the 
Cincinnatus  of  the  West."  How  much  do  seven  short 
paragraphs  tell! 

Patrick  Henry  was  born  in  1736,  died  1799,  the  same 
year  that  Washington  "passed  away;"  and  like  his,  this 
life  can  speak  for  itself.  He  was  the  most  famous  orator 
of  the  Revolution.  He  said,  "give  me  liberty  or  give  me 
death!"  He  also  said,  "We  must  fight.  An  appeal  to 
arms  and  to  the  god  of  battles  is  all  that  is  left  us.  I 
repeat  it,  sir,  we  must  fight."  Another  saying  of  his  was, 
"Caesar  had  his  Brutus,  Charles  I  his  Cromwell,  and 
George  III — may  profit  by  their  example."  Again,  "The 
people,  and  only  the  people,  have  a  right  to  tax  the  people. ' ' 
He  won  in  the  famous  Parson's  case,  the  epithet  of  "The 
Orator  of  Nature."  He  was  the  first  governor  of  the 
Colony  of  Virginia  after  it  became  a  state. 

John  Hancock  was  born  in  1737,  and  died  1793.  He 
first  signed  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  He  was  a 
rich  Boston  merchant  as  well  as  a  Revolutionary  leader. 
He  was  chosen  president  of  the  Continental  congress  in 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  19 

1775.  He  and  Samuel  Adams  were  the  two  especially  ex- 
cepted  from  pardon  offered  the  "rebels"  by  the  English. 

As  president  of  congress  he  signed  the  commission  of 
George  "Washington  as  commander-in-chief  of  the  army. 

When  he  signed  the  Declaration  of  Independence  he 
said,  "The  British  ministry  can  read  that  name  without 
spectacles ;  let  them  double  their  reward. ' '  He  was  elected 
the  first  governor  of  the  state  of  Massachusetts  in  1780. 

Anthony  Wayne  was  born  in  1745,  and  died  in  1796. 
He  was  often  called  "Mad  Anthony"  on  account  of  his 
intrepidity.  He  was  the  hero  of  Stony  Point.  He  built  a 
fort  on  the  spot  of  St.  Glair's  defeat  and  named  it  Fort 
Recovery.  He  was  made  commander-in-chief  of  the  Army 
of  the  Northwest  in  1792.  He  gained  a  great  victory  over 
the  Miami  Indians  in  Ohio  in  1794.  He,  as  a  Revolutionary 
general,  banished  whiskey  from  his  camp  calling  it ' '  ardent 
poison" — from  whence  came  the  expression  "ardent 
spirits"  when  applied  to  stimulants.  Major  Andre  com- 
posed a  poem  about  him  called  the  ' '  Cow  Chase, ' '  showing 
how  he  captured  supplies  for  the  Americans. 

Alexander  Hamilton  was  born  in  1757,  and  died  in 
1804.  He  was  aide-de-camp  to  Washington  in  1777 — the 
most  trying  year  of  the  entire  Revolutionary  war.  He 
succeeded  Washington  as  commander-in-chief  of  the  United 
States  army.  He  was  the  first  secretary  of  the  treasury 
of  the  United  States.  He  founded  the  financial  system  of 
the  United  States.  He  was  the  Revolutionary  statesman 
who  said,  "Reformers  make  opinions,  and  opinions  make 
parties" — a  true  aphorism  to-day.  He  is  known  as  the 
"prince  of  politicians,  or  America's  greatest  political 
genius."  His  brilliant  career  was  cut  short  at  the  age  of 
43  by  Aaron  Burr — whose  life  is  summed  up  in  two  sad, 
bitter  lines : 

"His  country's  curse,  his  children's  shame; 
Outcast  of  virtue,  peace  and  fame." 


20  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

Although  John  Paul  Jones  was  not  a  Revolutionary 
soldier  on  the  land,  yet  he  was  "the  Washington  of  the 
Seas." 

He  was  born  in  1747  and  died  1792.  He  was  the  first 
to  hoist  an  American  naval  flag  on  board  an  American 
frigate.  He  fought  the  first  naval  engagement  under  the 
United  States'  national  ensign  or  flag. 

He  commanded  the  Bon  Homme  Richard  in  the  great 
sea  fight  with  the  Serapis  in  the  English  Channel. 

He  said,  after  the  commander  of  the  Serapis  had  been 
knighted,  "if  I  should  have  the  good  fortune  to  meet  him 
again,  I  will  make  a  lord  of  him. ' '  He  was  presented  with 
a  sword  by  Louis  XVI  for  his  services  against  the  English. 
He  was  appointed  rear-admiral  of  the  Russian  fleet  by 
Catherine  II. 

These  are  but  a  few  of  the  many  men  who  did  so 
valiantly  their  part  during  the  Revolutionary  period. 

SUSIE  GENTRY, 
State  Vice-Regent,  D.  A.  R. 

(A  talk  made  to  the  public  school  teachers  of  Williamson 
County — at  the  request  of  the  superintendent  of  instruction — in 
Franklin,  Tennessee,  January  13,  1906.) — American  Monthly 
Magazine. 


THE  BATTLE  OF  ALAMANCE. 
BY  REV.  THOMAS  B.  GREGORY. 

At  the  battle  of  Alamance,  N.  C.,  fought  May  16,  1771, 
was  shed  the  first  blood  of  the  great  struggle  which  was  to 
result  in  the  establishment  of  American  independence. 

All  honor  to  Lexington,  where  the  ' '  embattled  farmers ' ' 
fired  shots  that  were  "heard  around  the  world,"  but  let  it 
not  be  forgotten  that  other  farmers,  almost  four  years  be- 
fore the  day  of  Lexington,  opened  the  fight  of  which  Lex- 
ington was  only  the  continuation. 

The  principles  for  which  the  North  Carolina  farmers 
fought  at  Alamance  were  identified  with  those  for  which 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  21 

Massachusetts  farmers  fought  at  Lexington.  Of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts patriots  nineteen  were  killed  and  wounded, 
while  of  the  Carolina  patriots  over  200  lay  killed  or  crip- 
pled upon  the  field  and  six,  later  on,  died  upon  the  scaffold, 
yet,  while  all  the  world  has  heard  of  Lexington,  not  one 
person  in  a  thousand  knows  anything  to  speak  of  about 
Alamance. 

William  Tryon,  the  royal  Governor  of  North  Carolina, 
was  so  mean  that  they  called  him  the  "Wolf."  In  the 
name  of  his  royal  master  and  for  the  furtherance  of  his  own 
greedy  instincts  Tryon  oppressed  the  people  of  his  province 
to  the  point  where  they  were  obliged  to  do  one  or  two 
things — resist  him  or  become  slaves.  They  resolved  to 
resist  and  formed  themselves  into  an  organization  known 
as  "Regulators,"  a  body  of  as  pure  patriots  as  ever  shoul- 
dered a  gun. 

Having  protested  time  and  again  against  the  unlawful 
taxation  under  which  they  groaned,  they  finally  quit  groan- 
ing, raised  the  cry  of  freedom  and  rose  in  arms  against 
Tryon  and  King  George. 

To  the  number  of  2,000  or  3,000  the  Regulators,  only 
partly  armed  and  without  organization,  met  the  forces  of 
the  royal  Governor  at  Alamance. 

"Lay  down  your  guns  or  I  will  fire!"  shouted  the 
British  commander.  ' '  Fire  and  be  damned ! ' '  shouted  back 
the  leader  of  the  Regulators.  At  once  the  battle  opened, 
and,  of  course,  the  Regulators  were  defeated  and  dispersed. 
But  old  Tryon  received  the  lesson  he  had  so  long  needed — 
that,  while  Americans  could  be  shot  down  on  the  battlefield, 
they  could  not  be  made  tamely  to  submit  to  the  high-handed 
oppression  of  King  George  and  his  creatures. 


22  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


THE  BATTLE  OF  LEXINGTON  APRIL  19,  1775. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  day  on  which  the  Provincial 
Congress  of  Massachusetts  adjourned,  General  Gage  took 
the  light  infantry  and  grenadiers  off  duty  and  secretly 
prepared  an  expedition  to  destroy  the  colony's  stores  at 
Concord.  The  attempt  had  for  several  weeks  been  expec- 
ted, and  signals  were  concerted  to  announce  the  first  move- 
ment of  troops  for  the  country.  Samuel  Adams  and  Han- 
cock, who  had  not  yet  left  Lexington  for  Philadelphia, 
received  a  timely  message  from  Warren,  and  in  conse- 
quence the  Committee  of  Safety  moved  a  part  of  the  public 
stores  and  secreted  the  cannon. 

On  Tuesday,  the  eighteenth  of  April,  ten  or  more 
British  sergeants  in  disguise  dispersed  themselves  through 
Cambridge  and  farther  west  to  intercept  all  communica- 
tion. In  the  following  night  the  grenadiers  and  light 
infantry,  not  less  than  eight  hundred  in  number,  the  flower 
of  the  army  at  Boston,  commanded  by  Lieutenant-Colonel 
Smith,  crossed  in  the  boats  of  the  transport  ships  from  the 
foot  of  the  Common  at  East  Cambridge. 

Gage  directed  that  no  one  else  should  leave  the  town, 
but  Warren  had,  at  ten  o'clock,  dispatched  William  Dawes 
through  Roxbury  and  Paul  Revere  by  way  of  Charlestown 
to  Lexington. 

Revere  stopped  only  to  engage  a  friend  to  raise  the  con- 
certed signals,  and  two  friends  rowed  him  across  the 
Charles  River  five  minutes  before  the  sentinels  received 
the  order  to  prevent  it.  All  was  still,  as  suited  the  hour. 
The  Somerset,  man-of-war,  was  winding  with  the  young 
flood ;  the  waning  moon  just  peered  above  a  clear  horizon, 
while  from  a  couple  of  lanterns  in  the  tower  of  the  North 
Church  the  beacon  streamed  to  the  neighboring  towns  as 
fast  as  light  could  travel. 

A  little  beyond  Charlestown  Neck  Revere  was  intercep- 
ted by  two  British  officers  on  horseback,  but  being  well 
mounted  he  turned  suddenly  and  escaped  by  the  road  to 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  23 

Medford.  In  that  town  he  waked  the  captain  and  Minute 
Men,  and  continued  to  rouse  almost  every  house  on  the 
way  to  Lexington,  making  the  memorable  ride  of  Paul 
Revere.  The  troops  had  not  advanced  far  when  the  firing 
of  guns  and  ringing  of  bells  announced  that  their  expedi- 
tion had  been  heralded,  and  Smith  sent  back  for  a  rein- 
forcement. 

Early  on  the  nineteenth  of  April  the  message  from 
Warren  reached  Adams  and  Hancock,  who  at  once  divined 
the  object  of  the  expedition.  Revere,  therefore,  and  Dawes, 
joined  by  Samuel  Fresco tt,  "a  high  Son  of  Liberty"  from 
Concord,  rode  forward,  calling  up  the  inhabitants  as  they 
passed  along,  till  in  Lincoln  they  fell  upon  a  party  of 
British  officers.  Revere  and  Dawes  were  seized  and  taken 
back  to  Lexington,  where  they  were  released,  but  Prescott 
leaped  over  a  low  stone  wall  and  galloped  on  for  Concord. 

There,  at  about  two  hours  after  midnight,  a  peal  from 
the  bell  of  the  meeting  house  brought  together  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  place,  young  and  old,  with  their  firelocks,  ready 
to  make  good  the  resolute  words  of  their  town  debates. 
Among  the  most  alert  was  William  Emerson,  the  minister, 
with  gun  in  hand,  his  powder  horn  and  pouch  of  balls  slung 
over  his  shoulder.  By  his  sermons  and  his  prayers  his 
flock  learned  to  hold  the  defense  of  their  liberties  a  part 
of  their  covenant  with  God.  His  presence  with  arms 
strengthened  their  sense  of  duty. 

From  daybreak  to  sunrise,  the  summons  ran  from  house 
to  house  through  Acton.  Express  messengers  and  the  call 
of  Minute  Men  spread  widely  the  alarm.  How  children 
trembled  as  they  were  scared  out  of  sleep  by  the  cries! 
How  women,  with  heaving  breasts,  bravely  seconded  their 
husbands !  How  the  countrymen,  forced  suddenly  to  arm, 
without  guides  or  counsellors,  took  instant  counsel  of  their 
courage !  The  mighty  chorus  of  voices  rose  from  the  scat- 
tered farmhouses,  and,  as  it  were,  from  the  ashes  of  the 
dead.  "Come  forth,  champions  of  liberty;  now  free  your 
country ;  protect  your  sons  and  daughters,  your  wives  and 


24  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

homesteads;  rescue  the  houses  of  the  God  of  your  fathers, 
the  franchises  handed  down  from  your  ancestors."  Now 
all  is  at  stake ;  the  battle  is  for  all. 

Lexington,  in  1775,  may  have  had  seven  hundred 
inhabitants.  Their  minister  was  the  learned  and  fervent 
Jonas  Clark,  the  bold  inditer  of  patriotic  state  papers,  that 
may  yet  be  read  on  their  town  records.  In  December,  1772, 
they  had  instructed  their  representative  to  demand  "a 
radical  and  lasting  redress  of  their  grievances,  for  not 
through  their  neglect  should  the  people  be  enslaved."  A 
year  later  they  spurned  the  use  of  tea.  In  1774,  at  various 
town  meetings,  they  voted  "to  increase  their  stock  of 
ammunition,"  "to  encourage  military  discipline,  and  to 
put  themselves  in  a  posture  of  defense  against  their 
enemies."  In  December  they  distributed  to  "the  train 
band  and  alarm  list"  arms  and  ammunition  and  resolved 
to  "supply  the  training  soldiers  with  bayonets." 

At  two  in  the  morning,  under  the  eye  of  the  minister, 
and  of  Hancock  and  Adams,  Lexington  Common  was  alive 
with  the  Minute  Men.  The  roll  was  called  and,  of  militia 
and  alarm  men,  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  answered  to 
their  names.  The  captain,  John  Parker,  ordered  everyone 
to  load  with  powder  and  ball,  but  to  take  care  not  to  be 
the  first  to  fire.  Messengers  sent  to  look  for  the  British 
regulars  reported  that  there  were  no  signs  of  their 
approach.  A  watch  was  therefore  set,  and  the  company 
dismissed  with  orders  to  come  together  at  beat  of  drum. 

The  last  stars  were  vanishing  from  night  when  the 
foremost  party,  led  by  Pitcairn,  a  major  of  marines,  was 
discovered  advancing  quickly  and  in  silence.  Alarm  guns 
were  fired  and  the  drums  beat,  not  a  call  to  village  husband- 
men only,  but  the  reveille  of  humanity.  Less  than  seventy, 
perhaps  less  than  sixty,  obeyed  the  summons,  and,  in  sight 
of  half  as  many  boys  and  unarmed  men,  were  paraded  in 
two  ranks  a  few  rods  north  of  the  meeting  house. 

The  British  van,  hearing  the  drum  and  the  alarm  guns, 
halted  to  load;  the  remaining  companies  came  up,  and,  at 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  25 

half  an  hour  before  sunrise,  the  advance  party  hurried 
forward  at  double  quick  time,  almost  upon  a  run,  closely 
followed  by  the  grenadiers.  Pitcairn  rode  in  front  and 
when  within  five  or  six  rods  of  the  Minute  Men,  cried  out : 
"Disperse,  ye  villains!  Ye  rebels,  disperse!  Lay  down 
your  arms!  Why  don't  you  lay  down  your  arms  and 
disperse?"  The  main  part  of  the  countrymen  stood 
motionless  in  the  ranks,  witnesses  against  aggression,  too 
few  to  resist,  too  brave  to  fly.  At  this  Pitcairn  discharged 
a  pistol,  and  with  a  loud  voice  cried  "Fire!"  The  order 
was  followed  first  by  a  few  guns,  which  did  no  execution, 
and  then  by  a  close  and  deadly  discharge  of  musketry. 

Jonas  Parker,  the  strongest  and  best  wrestler  in  Lexing- 
ton, had  promised  never  to  run  from  British  troops,  and 
he  kept  his  vow.  A  wound  brought  him  on  his  knees. 
Having  discharged  his  gun  he  was  preparing  to  load  it 
again  when  he  was  stabbed  by  a  bayonet  and  lay  on  the 
post  which  he  took  at  the  morning's  drum  beat.  So  fell 
Isaac  Muzzey,  and  so  died  the  aged  Robert  Munroe,  who 
in  1758  had  been  an  ensign  at  Louisburg.  Jonathan 
Harrington,  Jr.,  was  struck  in  front  of  his  own  house  on  the 
north  of  the  common.  His  wife  was  at  the  window  as  he 
fell.  With  blood  gushing  from  his  breast,  he  rose  in  her 
sight,  tottered,  fell  again,  then  crawled  on  hands  and  knees 
toward  his  dwelling ;  she  ran  to  meet  him,  but  only  reached 
him  as  he  expired  on  their  threshold.  Caleb  Harrington, 
who  had  gone  into  the  meeting  house  for  powder,  was  shot 
as  he  came  out.  Samuel  Hadley  arid  John  Brown  were 
pursued  and  killed  after  they  had  left  the  green.  Asabel 
Porter,  of  Woburn,  who  had  been  taken  prisoner  by  the 
British  on  the  march,  endeavoring  to  escape,  was  shot 
within  a  few  rods  of  the  common.  Seven  men  of  Lexington 
were  killed,  nine  wounded,  a  quarter  part  of  all  who  stood 
in  arms  on  the  green. 

There  on  the  green  lay  in  death  the  gray-haired  and 
the  young;  the  grassy  field  was  red  "with  the  innocent 


26  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

blood  of  their  brethren  slain,"  crying  unto  God  for 
vengeance  from  the  ground. 

These  are  the  village  heroes  who  were  more  than  of 
noble  blood,  proving  by  their  spirit  that  they  were  of  a 
race  divine.  They  gave  their  lives  in  testimony  to  the 
rights  of  mankind,  bequeathing  to  their  country  an  assur- 
ance of  success  in  the  mighty  struggle  which  they  began. 
The  expanding  millions  of  their  countrymen  renew  and 
multiply  their  praise  from  generation  to  generation.  They 
fulfilled  their  duty  not  from  an  accidental  impulse  of  the 
moment;  their  action  was  the  ripened  fruit  of  Providence 
and  of  time. 

Heedless  of  his  own  danger,  Samuel  Adams,  with  the 
voice  of  a  prophet,  exclaimed :  ' '  Oh,  what  a  glorious  morn- 
ing is  this ! ' '  for  he  saw  his  country 's  independence  hasten- 
ing on,  and,  like  Columbus  in  the  tempest,  knew  that  the 
storm  bore  him  more  swiftly  toward  the  undiscovered  land. 

The  British  troops  drew  up  on  the  village  green,  fired  a 
volley,  huzzaed  thrice  by  way  of  triumph,  and  after  a  halt 
of  less  than  thirty  minutes,  marched  on  for  Concord. 
There,  in  the  morning  hours,  children  and  women  fled  for 
shelter  to  the  hills  and  the  woods  and  men  were  hiding  what 
was  left  of  cannon  and  military  stores. 

The  Minute  Men  and  militia  formed  on  the  usual 
parade,  over  which  the  congregation  of  the  town  for  near 
a  century  and  a  half  had  passed  to  public  worship,  the  free- 
men to  every  town  meeting,  and  lately  the  patriot  members 
of  the  Provincial  Congress  twice  a  day  to  their  little  senate 
house.  Near  that  spot  Winthrop,  the  father  of  Massachu- 
setts, had  given  counsel;  and  Eliot,  the  apostle  of  the 
Indians,  had  spoken  words  of  benignity  and  wisdom.  The 
people  of  Concord,  of  whom  about  two  hundred  appeared 
in  arms  on  that  day,  derived  their  energy  from  their  sense 
of  the  divine  power. 

The  alarm  company  of  the  place  Allied  near  the  Liberty 
Pole  on  the  hill,  to  the  right  of  the  lexington  road,  in  the 
front  of  the  meeting  house.  They  went  to  the  perilous 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  27 

duties  of  the  day  "with  seriousness  and  acknowledgment 
of  God,"  as  though  they  were  to  engage  in  acts  of  worship. 
The  minute  company  of  Lincoln,  and  a  few  men  from 
Acton,  pressed  in  at  an  early  hour ;  but  the  British,  as  they 
approached,  were  seen  to  be  four  times  as  numerous  as  the 
Americans.  The  latter,  therefore,  retreated,  first  to  an 
eminence  eighty  rods  farther  north,  then  across  Concord 
River,  by  the  North  Bridge,  till  just  beyond  it,  by  a  back 
road,  they  gained  high  ground  about  a  mile  from  the 
center  of  the  town.  There  they  waited  for  aid. 

About  seven  o'clock,  under  brilliant  sunshine,  the 
British  marched  with  rapid  step  into  Concord,  the  light 
infantry  along  the  hills  and  the  grenadiers  in  the  lower 
road. 

At  daybreak  the  Minute  Men  of  Acton  crowded  at  the 
drum-beat  to  the  house  of  Isaac  Davis,  their  captain,  who 
"made  haste  to  be  ready."  Just  thirty  years  old,  the 
father  of  four  little  ones,  stately  in  person,  a  man  of  few 
words,  earnest  even  to  solemnity,  he  parted  from  his  wife, 
saying:  "Take  good  care  of  the  children,"  and  while  she 
gazed  after  him  with  resignation  he  led  off  his  company. 

Between  nine  and  ten  the  number  of  Americans  on  the 
rising  ground  above  Concord  Bridge  had  increased  to  more 
than  four  hundred.  Of  these,  there  were  twenty-five  men 
from  Bedford,  with  Jonathan  Wilson  for  their  captain; 
others  were  from  Westford,  among  them  Thaxter,  a 
preacher;  others  from  Littleton,  from  Carlisle,  and  from 
Chelmsford.  The  Acton  company  came  last  and  formed 
on  the  right;  the  whole  was  a  gathering  not  so  much  of 
officers  and  soldiers  as  of  brothers  and  equals,  of  whom 
every  one  was  a  man  well  known  in  his  village,  observed 
in  the  meeting  houses  on  Sundays,  familiar  at  town  meet- 
ings and  respected  as  a  freeholder  or  a  freeholder's  son. 

Near  the  base  of  the  hill  Concord  River  flows  languidly 
in  a  winding  channel  and  was  approached  by  a  causeway 
over  the  wet  ground  of  its  left  bank.  The  by-road  from 
the  hill  on  which  the  Americans  had  rallied  ran  southerly 


28  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

till  it  met  the  causeway  at  right  angles.  The  Americans 
saw  before  them,  within  gunshot,  British  troops  holding 
possession  of  their  bridge,  and  in  the  distance  a  still  larger 
number  occupying  their  town,  which,  from  the  rising 
smoke,  seemed  to  have  been  set  on  fire. 

The  Americans  had  as  yet  received  only  uncertain 
rumors  of  the  morning's  events  at  Lexington.  At  the  sight 
of  fire  in  the  village  the  impulse  seized  them  ' '  to  march  into 
the  town  for  its  defense."  But  were  they  not  subjects  of 
the  British  king?  Had  not  the  troops  come  out  in 
obedience  to  acknowledged  authorities?  Was  resistance 
practicable?  Was  it  justifiable?  By  whom  could  it  be 
authorized?  No  union  had  been  formed,  no  independence 
proclaimed,  no  war  declared.  The  husbandmen  and 
mechanics  who  then  stood  on  the  hillock  by  Concord  River 
were  called  on  to  act  and  their  action  would  be  war  or 
peace,  submission  or  independence.  Had  they  doubted, 
they  must  have  despaired.  Prudent  statesmanship  would 
have  asked  for  time  to  ponder.  Wise  philosophy  would 
have  lost  from  hesitation  the  glory  of  opening  a  new  era 
for  mankind.  The  small  bands  at  Concord  acted  and  God 
was  with  them. 

"I  never  heard  from  any  person  the  least  expression 
of  a  wish  for  a  separation, ' '  Franklin,  not  long  before,  had 
said  to  Chatham.  In  October,  1774,  Washington  wrote: 
"No  such  thing  as  independence  is  desired  by  any  thinking 
man  in  America."  " Before  the  nineteenth  of  April, 
1775,"  relates  Jefferson,  "I  never  heard  a  whisper  of  a 
disposition  to  separate  from  Great  Britain."  Just  thirty- 
seven  days  had  passed  since  John  Adams  published  in 
Boston,  "That  there  are  any  who  pant  after  independence 
is  the  greatest  slander  on  the  province. ' ' 

The  American  Revolution  grew  out  of  the  souls  of  the 
people  and  was  an  inevitable  result  of  a  living  affection 
for  freedom,  which  set  in  motion  harmonious  effort  as 
certainly  as  the  beating  of  the  heart  sends  warmth  and 
color  through  the  system. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  29 

The  officers,  meeting  in  front  of  their  men,  spoke  a  few 
words  with  one  another  and  went  back  to  their  places. 
Barrett,  the  colonel,  on  horseback  in  the  rear,  then  gave 
the  order  to  advance,  but  not  to  fire  unless  attacked.  The 
calm  features  of  Isaac  Davis,  of  Acton,  became  changed; 
the  town  schoolmaster  of  Concord,  who  was  present,  could 
never  afterwards  find  words  strong  enough  to  express  how 
deeply  his  face  reddened  at  the  word  of  command.  "I 
have  not  a  man  that  is  afraid  to  go,"  said  Davis,  looking 
at  the  men  of  Acton,  and,  drawing  his  sword,  he  cried: 
"March!"  His  company,  being  on  the  right,  led  the  way 
toward  the  bridge,  he  himself  at  their  head,  and  by  his 
side  Major  John  Buttrick,  of  Concord,  with  John  Robinson, 
of  Westford,  lieutenant-colonel  in  Prescott's  regiment,  but 
on  this  day  a  volunteer  without  command. 

These  three  men  walked  together  in  front,  followed  by 
Minute  Men  and  militia  in  double  file,  training  arms. 
They  went  down  the  hillock,  entered  the  by-road,  came  to 
its  angle  with  the  main  road  and  there  turned  into  the 
causeway  that  led  straight  to  the  bridge.  The  British  be- 
gan to  take  up  the  planks;  to  prevent  it  the  Americans 
quickened  their  step.  At  this  the  British  fired  one  or  two 
shots  up  the  river;  then  another,  by  which  Luther  Blan- 
chard  and  Jonas  Brown  were  wounded.  A  volley  followed, 
and  Isaac  Davis  and  Abner  Hosmer  fell  dead.  Three 
hours  before,  Davis  had  bid  his  wife  farewell.  That  after- 
noon he  was  carried  home  and  laid  in  her  bedroom.  His 
countenance  was  pleasant  in  death.  The  bodies  of  two 
others  of  his  company,  who  were  slain  that  day,  were 
brought  to  her  house,  and  the  three  were  followed  to  the 
village  graveyard  by  a  concourse  of  neighbors  from  miles 
around.  Heaven  gave  her  length  of  days  in  the  land 
which  his  self-devotion  assisted  to  redeem.  She  lived  to 
see  her  country  reach  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  the  Pacific; 
Avhen  it  was  grown  great  in  numbers,  wealth  and  power,  the 
United  States  in  Congress  bethought  themselves  to  pay 


30  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

honors  to  her  husband 's  martyrdom  and  comfort  her  under 
the  double  burden  of  sorrow  and  of  more  than  ninety  years. 

As  the  British  fired,  Emerson,  who  was  looking  on 
from  an  upper  window  in  his  house  near  the  bridge,  was 
for  one  moment  uneasy  lest  the  fire  should  not  be  returned. 
It  was  only  for  a  moment ;  Buttrick,  leaping  in  the  air  and 
at  the  same  time  partially  turning  around,  cried  aloud: 
"Fire,  fellow  soldiers!  for  God's  sake,  fire!"  and  the  cry 
"fire!  fire!  fire!"  ran  from  lip  to  lip.  Two  of  the  British 
fell,  several  were  wounded,  and  in  two  minutes  all  was 
hushed.  The  British  retreated  in  disorder  toward  their 
main  body;  the  countrymen  were  left  in  possession  of  the 
bridge.  This  is  the  world  renowned  "Battle  of  Concord," 
more  eventful  than  Agincourt  or  Blenheim. 

The  Americans  stood  astonished  at  what  they  had  done. 
They  made  no  pursuit  and  did  no  further  harm,  except  that 
one  wounded  soldier,  attempting  to  arise  if  to  escape,  was 
struck  on  the  head  by  a  young  man  with  a  hatchet.  The 
party  at  Barrett's  might  have  been  cut  off,  but  was  not 
molested.  As  the  Sudbury  company,  commanded  by  the 
brave  Nixon,  passed  near  the  South  Bridge,  Josiah  Haynes, 
then  eighty  years  of  age,  deacon  of  the  Sudbury  Church, 
urged  an  attack  on  the  British  party  stationed  there;  his 
advice  was  rejected  by  his  fellow  soldiers  as  premature, 
but  the  company  in  which  he  served  proved  among  the 
most  alert  during  the  rest  of  the  day. 

In  the  town  of  Concord,  Smith,  for  half  an  hour, 
showed  by  marches  and  counter-marches  his  uncertainty 
of  purpose.  At  last,  about  noon,  he  left  the  town,  to  retreat 
the  way  he  came,  along  the  hilly  road  that  wound  through 
forests  and  thickets.  The  Minute  Men  and  militia  who  had 
taken  part  in  the  fight  ran  over  the  hills  opposite  the 
battle  field  into  the  east  quarter  of  the  town,  crossed  the 
pasture  known  as  the  "Great  Fields,"  and  placed  them- 
selves in  ambush  a  little  to  the  eastward  of  the  village,  near 
the  junction  of  the  Bedford  road.  There  they  were  re- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  31 

inforced  by  men  from  all  around  and  at  that  point  the 
chase  of  the  English  began. 

Among  the  foremost  were  the  Minute  Men  of  Reading, 
led  by  John  Brooks  and  accompanied  by  Foster,  the 
minister  of  Littleton,  as  a  volunteer.  The  company  of 
Billerica,  whose  inhabitants,  in  their  just  indignation  at 
Nesbit  and  his  soldiers,  had  openly  resolved  to  "use  a 
different  style  from  that  of  petition  and  complaint"  came 
down  from  the  north,  while  the  East  Sudbury  company 
appeared  on  the  south.  A  little  below  the  Bedford  road 
at  Merriam's  corner  the  British  faced  about,  but  after  a 
sharp  encounter,  in  which  several  of  them  were  killed,  they 
resumed  their  retreat. 

At  the  high  land  in  Lincoln  the  old  road  bent  toward 
the  north,  just  where  great  trees  on  the  west  and  thickets 
on  the  east  offered  cover  to  the  pursuers.  The  men  from 
Wodburn  came  up  in  great  numbers  and  well  armed. 
Along  these  defiles  fell  eight  of  the  British.  Here  Pitcairn 
for  safety  was  forced  to  quit  his  horse,  which  was  taken 
with  his  pistols  in  their  holsters.  A  little  farther  on  Jona- 
than Wilson,  captain  of  the  Bedford  Minute  Men,  too 
zealous  to  keep  on  his  guard,  was  killed  by  a  flanking 
party.  At  another  defile  in  Lincoln,  the  Minute  Men  at 
Lexington,  commanded  by  John  Parker,  renewed  the  fight. 
Every  piece  of  wood,  every  rock  by  the  wayside,  served  as 
a  lurking  place.  Scarce  ten  of  the  Americans  were  at  any 
time  seen  together,  yet  the  hills  seemed  to  the  British  to 
swarm  with  "rebels,"  as  if  they  had  dropped  from  the 
clouds,  and  "the  road  was  lined"  by  an  unintermitted  fire 
from  behind  stone  walls  and  trees. 

At  first  the  invaders  moved  in  order ;  as  they  drew  near 
Lexington,  their  flanking  parties  became  ineffective  from 
weariness;  the  wounded  were  scarce  able  to  get  forward. 
In  the  west  of  Lexington,  as  the  British  were  rising  Fiske  's 
hill,  a  sharp  contest  ensued.  It  was  at  the  eastern  foot  of 
the  same  hill  that  James  Hayward,  of  Acton,  encountered 
a  regular,  and  both  at  the  same  moment  fired ;  the  regular 


32  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

dropped  dead;  Hay  ward  was  mortally  wounded.  A  little 
farther  on  fell  the  octogenarian,  Josiah  Haynes,  who  had 
kept  pace  with  the  swiftest  in  the  pursuit. 

The  British  troops,  "greatly  exhausted  and  fatigued 
and  having  expended  almost  all  of  their  ammunition," 
began  to  run  rather  than  retreat  in  order.  The  officers 
vainly  attempted  to  stop  their  flight.  "They  were  driven 
before  the  Americans  like  sheep."  At  last,  about  two  in 
the  afternoon,  after  they  had  hurried  through  the  middle 
of  the  town,  about  a  mile  below  the  field  of  the  morning's 
bloodshed,  the  officers  made  their  way  to  the  front  and  by 
menaces  of  death  began  to  form  them  under  a  very  heavy 
fire. 

At  that  moment  Lord  Percy  came  in  sight  with  the  first 
brigade,  consisting  of  Welsh  Fusileers,  the  Fourth,  the 
Forty-seventh  and  the  Thirty-eighth  Regiments,  in  all 
about  twelve  hundred  men,  with  two  field  pieces.  Insolent, 
as  usual,  they  marched  out  of  Boston  to  the  tune  of 
Yankee  Doodle,  but  they  grew  alarmed  at  finding  every 
house  on  the  road  deserted. 

While  the  cannon  kept  the  Americans  at  bay,  Percy 
formed  his  detachment  into  a  square,  enclosing  the  fugi- 
tives, who  lay  down  for  rest  on  the  ground,  "their  tongues 
hanging  out  of  their  mouths  like  those  of  dogs  after  a 
chase. ' ' 

After  the  juncture  of  the  fugitives  with  Percy,  the 
troops  under  his  command  amounted  to  fully  two-thirds 
of  the  British  Army  in  Boston,  and  yet  they  must  fly  before 
the  Americans  speedily  and  fleetly,  or  be  overwhelmed. 
Two  wagons,  sent  out  to  them  with  supplies,  were  waylaid 
and  captured  by  Payson,  the  minister  of  Chelsea.  From 
far  and  wide  Minute  Men  were  gathering.  The  men  of 
Dedham,  even  the  old  men,  received  their  minister's 
blessing  and  went  forth,  in  such  numbers  that  scarce  one 
male  between  sixteen  and  seventy  was  left  at  home.  That 
morning  William  Prescott  mustered  his  regiment,  and 
though  Pepperell  was  so  remote  that  he  could  not  be  in 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  33 

season  for  the  pursuit,  he  hastened  down  with  five  com- 
panies of  guards.  Before  noon  a  messenger  rode  at  full 
speed  into  Worcester,  crying:  "To  arms!"  A  fresh  horse 
was  brought  and  the  tidings  went  on,  while  the  Minute 
Men  of  that  town,  after  joining  hurriedly  on  the  common 
in  a  fervent  prayer  from  their  minister,  kept  on  the  march 
till  they  reached  Cambridge. 

Aware  of  his  perilous  position,  Percy,  resting  but  half 
an  hour,  renewed  his  retreat. 

Beyond  Lexington  the  troops  were  attacked  by  men 
chiefly  from  Essex  and  the  lower  towns.  The  fire  from  the 
rebels  slackened  till  they  approached  West  Cambridge, 
where  Joseph  Warren  and  William  Heath,  both  of  the 
committee  of  safety,  the  latter  a  provincial  general  officer, 
gave  for  a  moment  some  appearance  of  organization  to  the 
pursuit,  and  the  fight  grew  sharper  and  more  determined. 
Here  the  company  from  Danvers,  which  made  a  breastwork 
of  a  pile  of  shingles,  lost  eight  men,  caught  between  the 
enemy's  flank  guard  and  main  body.  Here,  too,  a  musket 
ball  grazed  the  hair  of  Joseph  Warren,  whose  heart  beat 
to  arms,  so  that  he  was  ever  in  the  place  of  greatest  danger. 
The  British  became  more  and  more  "exasperated"  and 
indulged  themselves  in  savage  cruelty.  In  one  house  they 
found  two  aged,  helpless,  unarmed  men  and  butchered 
them  both  without  mercy,  stabbing  them,  breaking  their 
skulls  and  dashing  out  their  brains.  Hannah  Adams,  wife 
of  Deacon  Joseph  Adams,  of  Cambridge,  lay  in  child-bed 
with  a  babe  of  a  week  old,  but  was  forced  to  crawl  with  her 
infant  in  her  arms  and  almost  naked  to  a  corn  shed,  while 
the  soldiers  set  her  house  on  fire.  Of  the  Americans  there 
were  never  more  than  four  hundred  together  at  any  time ; 
but,  as  some  grew  tired  or  used  up  their  ammunition,  others 
took  their  places,  and  though  there  was  not  much  concert 
or  discipline  and  no  attack  with  masses,  the  pursuit  never 
flagged. 

Below  West  Cambridge  the  militia  from  Dorchester, 
Roxbury  and  Brookline  came  up.  Of  these,  Isaac  Gardner, 


34  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

of  the  latter  place,  one  on  whom  the  colony  rested  many 
hopes,  fell  about  a  mile  west  of  Harvard  College.  The 
field  pieces  began  to  lose  their  terror,  so  that  the  Ameri- 
cans pressed  upon  the  rear  of  the  fugitives,  whose  retreat 
was  as  rapid  as  it  possibly  could  be.  A  little  after  sunset 
the  survivors  escaped  across  Charlestown  Neck. 

The  troops  of  Percy  had  marched  thirty  miles  in  ten 
hours ;  the  party  of  Smith  in  six  hours  had  retreated  twenty 
miles ;  the  guns  of  the  ship-of-war  and  the  menace  to  burn 
the  town  of  Charlestown  saved  them  from  annoyance  dur- 
ing the  rest  on  Bunker  Hill  and  while  they  were  ferried 
across  Charles  River. 

On  that  day  forty-nine  Americans  were  killed,  thirty- 
four  wounded  and  five  missing.  The  loss  of  the  British  in 
killed,  wounded  and  missing  was  two  hundred  and  seventy- 
three.  Among  the  wounded  were  many  officers ;  Smith  was 
hurt  severely.  Many  more  were  disabled  by  fatigue. 

"The  night  preceding  the  outrages  at  Lexington  there 
were  not  fifty  people  in  the  whole  colony  that  ever  expected 
any  blood  would  be  shed  in  the  contest";  the  night  after, 
the  king's  governor  and  the  king's  army  found  themselves 
closely  beleaguered  in  Boston. 

''The  next  news  from  England  must  be  conciliatory, 
or  the  connection  between  us  ends,"  said  Warren.  "This 
month,"  so  wrote  William  Emerson,  of  Concord,  late 
chaplain  to  the  Provincial  Congress,  chronicled  in  a  blank 
leaf  of  his  almanac,  "is  remarkable  for  the  greatest  events 
of  the  present  age."  "From  the  nineteenth  of  April, 
1775,"  said  Clark,  of  Lexington,  on  its  first  anniversary, 
"will  be  dated  the  liberty  of  the  American  world." 

NOTE. — The  principal  part  of  this  account  of  the  Battle  of 
Lexington  is  taken  from  Banecroft's  history. — American  Monthly 
Magazine. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  35 


SIGNERS  OF  DECLARATION. 

(Poem  that  embraces  the  names  of  the  famous  Americans.) 

It  will  not  be  denied  that  the  men  who,  on  July  4,  1776, 
pledged  "their  lives,  their  fortunes  and  their  sacred  honor" 
in  behalf  of  our  national  liberty  deserve  the  most  profound 
reverence  from  every  American  citizen.  By  arranging  in 
rhyme  the  names  of  the  signers  according  to  the  colonies 
from  which  they  were  delegated  it  will  assist  the  youthful 
learner  in  remembering  the  names  of  those  fathers  of 
American  Independence. 

I. 

The  Massachusetts  delegation 

That  signed  our  glorious  Declaration 

Where  Hancock,  Gerry,  Robert  Paine, 

The  great  John  Adams,  and  again 

Another  Adams,  Samuel  by  name. 

n. 

New  Hampshire,  called  the  "Granite  State," 
Sent  Whipple,  Bartlett,  Thornton  great, 
Alike  in  counsel  and  debate. 

III. 

Rhode  Island's  delegates,  we  see, 
Were  Stephen  Hopkins  and  Ellery. 

IV. 

Connecticut,  excelled  by  none, 

With  Wolcott,  Williams  and  Huntington. 

V. 

New  York  as  delegates  employed 
Lewis  Morris  and  William  Floyd, 
With  Francis  Lewis  and  Livingston, 
Who  died  before  the  war  was  done. 

VI. 

New  Jersey  to  the  congress  sent 

Her  honored  college  president, 

John  Witherspoon,  with  Stockton,  Clark, 

Hart,  Hopkinson — all  men  of  mark. 


36  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

VII. 

Though  Pennsylvania  need  not  blush 
For  Morris,  Morton,  Wilson,  Rush, 
And  though  most  men  might  seem  as  dross 
To  Cylmer,  Taylor,  Smith  and  Ross, 
To  Franklin  each  his  tribute  brings 
Who  neither  lightning  feared,  nor  kings. 

VIII. 

The  men  from  Delaware — indeed 
As  true  as  steel  in  utmost  need — 
Were  Rodney,  with  MeKean  and  Read. 

IX. 

"My  Maryland"  is  proud  to  own 
Her  Carroll,  Paca,  Chase  and  Stone. 

X. 

On  old  Virginia's  roll  we  see 
The  gifted  Richard  Henry  Lee, 
And,  just  as  earnest  to  be  free. 
His  brother,  Francis  Lightfoot  Lee, 
And  Wythe  and  Nelson,  patriots  true, 
With  Harrison  and  Braxton,  too; 
But  of  them  all,  there  was  not  one 
As  great  as  Thomas  Jefferson. 

XI. 

North  Carolina's  chosen  men 
We  know  were  Hooper,  Hewes  and  Penn. 

XII. 

And  South  Carolina's  vote  was  one — 
By  Hey  ward,  Lynch  and  Middleton. 

XIII. 

From  Georgia  came  Gwinnett  and  Hall 
And  Walton,  too,  the  last  of  all 
Who  signed  our  precious  Declaration 
The  pride  and  glory  of  the  nation. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  37 

LIFE  AT  VALLEY  FORGE. 

MRS.  HARRIET  D.  EISENBERG. 

I  have  chosen  to  look  up  particulars  concerning  the 
daily  life  of  the  soldier  at  Valley  Forge  in  the  awful  winter 
of  1777-8.  And  as  no  historian  can  picture  the  life  of  any 
period  so  vividly  as  it  may  be  described  by  those  who  were 
participants  in  that  life,  or  eye  witnesses  of  it,  I  have 
gathered  the  materials  for  this  paper  from  diaries  of  those 
who  were  there,  from  accounts  by  men  whose  friends  were 
in  the  camp,  from  letters  sent  to  and  from  the  camp,  and 
from  the  orderly  book  of  a  general  who  kept  a  strict  report 
of  the  daily  orders  issued  by  the  Commander-in-chief,  from 
the  fall  campaign  of  1777,  to  the  late  spring  of  1778. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  reiterate  what  all  of  us  know, — that 
the  winter  of  '77-8  was  the  blackest  time  of  the  war  of 
Independence,  and  it  was  made  so,  not  only  by  the  machi- 
nations of  the  enemies  of  Washington  who  were  striving  to 
displace  him  as  Commander-in-Chief,  but  by  the  unparal- 
leled severity  of  the  winter  and  the  dearth  of  the  com- 
monest necessaries  of  life.  The  sombreness  of  the  picture 
is  emphasized  by  contrast  with  the  brightness  and  gaiety 
that  characterized  the  life  in  Philadelphia  during  that 
same  winter  when  the  British  troops  occupied  the  city. 
There  a  succession  of  brilliant  festivities  was  going  on,  the 
gaieties  culminating  in  the  meschianza  that  most  gorgeous 
spectacle  ever  given  by  an  army  to  its  retiring  officer,  when 
Peggy  Shippen  and  Sallie  Chew  danced  the  night  away 
with  the  scarlet-coated  officers  of  the  British  army,  while 
fathers  and  brothers  were  suffering  on  the  hills  above  the 
Schuylkill. 

Why  did  Washington  elect  to  put  his  army  in  winter- 
quarters?  He  himself  answers  the  question,  which  was 
asked  by  congress  who  objected  to  the  army's  going  into 
winter  quarters  at  all.  The  campaign,  which  had  seen  the 
battles  of  the  Brandywine  and  of  Germantown,  was  over; 
the  British  were  in  possession  of  Philadelphia;  the  army 


38  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

was  fatigued  and  there  was  little  chance  of  recuperation 
from  sources  already  heavily  drained.  Hence  a  winter's 
rest  was  necessary.  And  Washington's  own  words,  as  he 
issued  the  orders  for  the  day  on  December  23d,  tell  us  why 
Valley  Forge  was  chosen. 

"The  General  wishes  it  was  in  his  power  to  conduct  the  troops 
into  the  best  winter  quarters;  but  where  are  those  to  be  found? 
Should  we  retire  into  the  interior  portions  of  the  country,  we 
should  find  them  crowded  with  virtuous  citizens  who,  sacrificing 
their  all,  have  left  Philadelphia,  and  fled  hither  for  protection. 
To  their  distress,  humanity  forbids  us  to  add.  This  is  not  all. 
We  should  leave  a  vast  extent  of  fertile  country  to  be  despoiled 
and  ravaged  by  the  enemy.  These  and  other  considerations 
make  it  necessary  to  take  such  a  position  (as  this),  and  influenced 
by  these  considerations  he  persuades  himself  that  officers  and 
soldiers,  with  one  heart  and  one  mind,  will  resolve  to  surmount 
every  difficulty  with  the  fortitude  and  patience  becoming  their 
profession  and  the  Sacred  Cause  in  which  they  are  engaged.  He 
himself,  will  share  in  the  hardships,  and  partake  of  every  incon- 
venience." 

And  with  this  resolve  on  his  part,  kept  faithfully 
through  the  long  weeks,  the  bitter  winter  was  begun. 

It  was  on  December  12th  that  a  bridge  of  wagons  was 
made  across  the  Schuylkill  and  the  army,  already  sick  and 
broken  down,  moved  over.  On  that  day,  Dr.  Waldo,  a 
surgeon  from  Connecticut  made  this  entry  in  his  diary: 

"Sunset.  We  are  ordered  to  march  over  the  river.  I'm  sick — 
eat  nothing — no  whiskey — no  baggage.  Lord-Lord-Lord." 

A  few  days  later  he  makes  this  entry : 

"The  army,  who  have  been  surprisingly  healthy  hitherto,  now 
begin  to  grow  sickly.  They  still  show  alacrity  and  contentment 
not  to  be  expected  from  so  young  troops. 

"I  am  sick,  discontented,  out  of  humor.  Poor  food,  hard 
lodging — cold  weather — fatigue — nasty  clothes — nasty  cooking — 
smoked  out  of  my  senses,  vomit  half  my  time — the  Devil's  in  it. 
I  can't  endure  it. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  39 

"Here  comes  a  bowl  of  soup — full  of  burnt  leaves  and  dirt.' — 
Away  with  it,  boys.  I'll  live  like  the  chameleon  upon  air.  'Pooh^ 
pooh,'  says  Patience.  You  talk  like  a  fool. — See  the  poor  soldier— 
with  what  cheerfulness  he  meets  his  foes  and  encounters  hardships. 
If  bare  of  foot  he  labors  through  mud  and  cold,  with  a  song 
extolling  war  and  Washington.  If  his  food  is  bad  he  eats  it  with 
contentment  and  whistles  it  into  digestion. — There  comes  a 
soldier — his  bare  feet  are  seen  through  his  worn  out  shoes.  His 
legs  are  nearly  naked  from  his  tattered  remains  of  an  old  pair  of 
stockings — his  shirt  hanging  in  strings, — his  hair  dishevelled — 
his  face  meagre — his  whole  appearance  pictures  a  person  for- 
saken and  discouraged.  He  comes  and  cries  with  despair — I  am 
sick.  My  feet  are  lame — my  legs  are  sore — my  body  covered  with 
tormenting  itch — my  clothes  worn  out — my  constitution  broken. 
I  fail  fast.  I  shall  soon  be  no  more.  And  all  the  reward  I  shall 
get  will  be — 'Poor  Will  is  dead." 

On  the  21st  of  December  this  entry  appears : 

"A  general  cry  through  the  camp  this  evening:  'no  meat — no 
meat.'  The  distant  vales  echo  back — 'no  meat.'  'What  have  you 
for  dinner,  Boys?'  'Nothing  but  fire  cake  and  water,  sir!  At 
night.  'Gentlemen,  supper  is  ready.'  'What  is  your  supper, 
ladsf  'Fire-cake  and  water  Sir.'  " 

Again  on  December  22d : 

"Lay  excessive  cold  and  uncomfortable  last  night.  My  eyes 
started  out  of  their  orbits  like  a  rabbit's  eyes,  occasioned  by  a 
great  cold  and  smoke.  Huts  go  slowly.  Cold  and  smoke  make 
us  fret. — I  don't  know  anything  that  vexes  a  man's  soul  more 
than  hot  smoke  continually  blowing  into  one's  eyes,  and  when 
he  attempts  to  avoid  it,  he  is  met  by  a  cold  and  freezing  wind." 

On  December  25th,  Xmas,  this  entry : 

"Still  in  tents.  The  sick  suffer  much  in  tents.  We  give  them 
mutton  and  grog  and  capital  medicine  it  is  once  in  a  while." 

January  1st: 

"I  am  alive.    I  am  well.    Huts  go  on  briskly." 

I  have  quoted  thus  lengthily  from  this  diary,  which 
gives,  perhaps,  the  most  vivid  picture  we  possess  of  that 


40  EEVOLUTIONARY  READER 

dark  period,  simply  because  it  touches  upon  almost  all  that 
concerns  the  life  of  the  soldiers  that  winter, — upon  their 
dwellings,  their  food,  their  health,  their  courage. 

The  Doctor  repeatedly  speaks  of  the  huts  which  were 
to  shelter  the  men.  In  the  order  issued  by  Washington 
to  his  generals  early  in  December,  directions  were  given 
concerning  the  construction  of  these  dwellings.  According 
to  these  directions,  the  major-generals,  accompanied  by 
the  engineers,  were  to  fix  on  the  proper  spot  for  hutting. 
The  sunside  of  the  hills  was  chosen,  and  here  they  construc- 
ted long  rows  of  log  huts,  and  made  numerous  stockades 
and  bristling  pikes  for  defence  along  the  line  of  the  trench. 
For  these  purposes  and  for  their  fuel  they  cut  off  an 
entire  forest  of  timber.  Can't  you  hear  the  steady  crash  of 
the  ax  held  by  hands  benumbed  with  the  cold,  as  blow,  by 
blow,  they  felled  the  trees  on  the  hillside,  eager  to  erect  the 
crude  huts  which  were  to  give  better  shelter  than  the  tents 
in  which  they  were  yet  shivering  and  choking  ?  In  cutting 
their  fire  wood,  the  soldiers  were  directed  to  save  such  parts 
of  each  tree  as  would  do  for  building,  reserving  16  or  18 
feet  of  trunk  for  logs  to  rear  their  huts.  "The  quarter- 
master-general, (so  says  the  order  of  December  20th)  is  to 
delay  no  time,  but  procure  large  quantities  of  straw,  either 
for  covering  the  huts  or  for  beds."  This  last  item  would 
suggest  the  meagreness  of  the  furnishing.  Throughout  the 
entire  winter  the  soldier  could  look  for  few  of  the  barest 
necessities  of  life.  An  order  from  headquarters  directed 
that  each  hut  should  be  provided  with  a  pail.  Dishes  were 
a  rarity.  Each  soldier  carried  his  knife  in  his  pocket,  while 
one  horn  spoon,  a  pewter  dish,  and  a  horn  tumbler  into 
which  whiskey  rarely  entered,  did  duty  for  a  whole  mess. 
The  eagerness  to  possess  a  single  dish  is  illustrated  by  an 
anecdote  which  has  come  down  in  my  own  family,  if  I  may 
presume  to  narrate  it.  My  Revolutionary  ancestor  was  a 
manufacturer  of  pottery.  In  the  leisure  hours  of  this 
bitter  time  at  Valley  Forge,  he  built  a  kiln  and  burnt  some 
pottery.  Just  as  it  was  time  to  open  the  ovens,  a  band  of 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  41 

soldiers  rushed  upon  them,  tearing  them  down,  and  trium- 
phantly marched  off  with  their  prize,  leaving  Captain 
Piercy  as  destitute  of  dishes  as  before. 

As  for  the  food  that  was  meant  to  sustain  the  defenders 
of  our  liberty,  the  diary  I  have  quoted,  together  with  Wash- 
ington's  daily  orders,  gives  us  sufficient  information  to 
enable  us  to  judge  of  its  meagreness.  Often  their  food 
was  salted  herring  so  decayed  that  it  had  to  be  dug  'en 
masse'  from  the  barrels.  Du  Poncean,  a  young  officer,  aid 
to  Baron  Steuben,  related  to  a  friend,  a  few  years  after  the 
war,  some  facts  of  stirring  interest.  "They  bore,"  he  says, 
"with  fortitude  and  patience.  Sometimes,  you  might  see  the 
soldiers  pop  their  heads  out  from  their  huts  and  call  in  an 
undertone — 'no  bread,  no  soldier;'  but  a  single  word  from 
their  officer  would  still  their  complaint."  Baron  Steuben 's 
cook  left  him  at  Valley  Forge,  saying  that  when  there  was 
nothing  to  cook,  any  one  might  turn  the  spit. 

The  commander-in-chief,  partaking  of  the  hardships  of 
his  brave  men,  was  accustomed  to  sit  down  with  his  invited 
officers  to  a  scanty  piece  of  meat,  with  some  hard  bread  and 
a  few  potatoes.  At  his  house,  called  Moore  Hall,  they 
drank  the  prosperity  of  the  nation  in  humble  toddy,  and 
the  luxurious  dessert  consisted  of  a  dish  of  hazel  nuts. 

Even  in  those  scenes,  Mrs.  Washington,  as  was  her 
practice  in  the  winter  campaign,  had  joined  her  husband, 
and  always  at  the  head  of  the  table  maintained  a  mild  and 
dignified,  yet  cheerful  manner.  She  busied  herself  all 
day  long,  with  errands  of  grace,  and  when  she  passed  along 
the  lines,  she  would  hear  the  fervent  cry, — ' '  God  bless  Lady 
Washington." 

I  need  not  go  into  details  concerning  the  lack  of 
clothing — the  diary  I  have  quoted  is  sufficiently  suggestive. 
An  officer  said,  some  years  after  the  war,  that  many  were 
without  shoes,  and  while  acting  as  sentinels,  had  doffed 
their  hats  to  stand  in,  to  save  their  feet  from  freezing. 
Deserters  to  the  British  army — for  even  among  the  loyal 
American  troops  there  were  some  to  be  found  who  could 


42  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

not  stand  up  against  cold  and  hunger  and  disease  and  the 
inducement  held  out  by  the  enemy  to  deserters — would 
enter  Philadelphia  shoeless  and  almost  nakedi — around 
their  body  an  old,  dirty  blanket,  fastened  by  a  leather  belt 
around  the  waist. 

One  does  not  wonder  that  disease  was  rampant,  that 
orders  had  to  be  issued  from  headquarters  for  the  proper 
treatment  of  the  itch;  for  inoculation  against  smallpox, 
for  the  care  of  those  suffering  from  dysentery  which  was 
widespread  in  the  camp.  On  January  8,  an  order  was 
issued  from  the  commander-in-chief  to  the  effect  that  men 
rendered  unfit  for  duty  by  the  itch  be  looked  after  by  the 
surgeon  and  properly  disposed  in  huts  where  they  could 
be  annointed  for  the  disease.  Hospital  provisions  were 
made  for  the  sick.  Huts,  15  by  25  and  9  feet  high,  with 
windows  in  each  end,  were  built,  two  for  each  brigade. 
They  were  placed  at  or  near  the  center,  and  not  more  than 
100  yards  from  the  bridge.  But  such  were  the  ravages  of 
the  disease  that  long  trenches  in  the  vale  below  the  hill 
were  dug,  and  filled  in  with  the  dead. 

To  turn  to  the  activities  of  the  camp, — its  duties,  privi- 
leges, and  amusements,  and  even  its  crimes.  Until  some- 
what late  in  the  spring,  when  Baron  Steuben  arrived  at 
Valley  Forge,  there  was  little  system  observed  in  the  drill- 
ing of  the  several  brigades.  Yet  each  day's  military  duty 
was  religiously  attended  to,  that  there  might,  at  least,  be 
some  preparation  for  defence  in  case  of  an  attack  from  the 
superior  force  at  Philadelphia.  The  duties  of  both  rank 
and  file  were  strictly  laid  down  by  Washington,  and  any 
dereliction  was  punished  with  military  strictness. 

In  the  commands  issued  on  February  8,  the  order  of 
the  day  is  plainly  indicated.  I  give  the  words  from 
Orderly  book : 

"Reveille  sounded  at  daybreak — troop  at  8 — retreat  at  sunset 
— tattoo  at  9.  Drummers  call  to  beat  at  the  right  of  first  line 
and  answer  through  that  line.  Then  through  the  second  and 
corp  of  artillery,  beginning  at  the  left.  Reserve  shall  follow 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  43 

the  second  line  immediately  upon  this.  Three  rolls,  to  begin, 
and  run  through  in  like  manner  as  the  call.  Then  all  the  drums 
of  the  army  at  the  heads  of  their  respective  corps  shall  go 
through  the  regular  beats,  ceasing  upon  the  right  which  will  be 
a  sign  for  the  whole  to  cease." 

Don't  you  imagine  that  you  hear  the  rise  and  fall  of 
the  notes  as  they  echoed  and  re-echoed  over  the  frozen  hills 
and  thrilled  the  hearts  that  beat  beneath  the  rags  in  the 
cold  winter  morning  ? 

The  daily  drill  on  parade,  the  picket  duty,  the  domestic 
duties  incumbent  upon  the  men  in  the  absence  of  the 
women,  the  leisure  hours,  then  taps,  and  the  day 's  tale  was 
told. 

I  should  like  to  tell  you  of  the  markets  established,  for 
two  days  each,  at  three  separate  points  on  the  outskirts  of 
the  camp,  where  for  prices  fixed  by  a  schedule  to  prevent 
extortion,  the  soldiers,  fortunate  enough  to  possess  some 
money  might  add  to  their  meagre  supplies  some  comforts 
in  food  or  clothing.  I  should  like  to  tell  of  the  sutlers  that 
followed  each  brigade,  and  the  strict  rules  that  governed 
their  dealings  with  the  army, — of  the  funerals,  the  simple 
ceremonies  of  which  were  fixed  by  orders  from  head- 
quarters; of  the  gaming  among  the  soldiers,  which  vice 
Washington  so  thoroughly  abhorred  that  he  forbade,  under 
strictest  penalties,  indulgence  in  even  harmless  games  of 
cards  and  dice.  I  should  like  to  tell  of  the  thanksgiving 
days  appointed  by  congress  for  some  signal  victory  of  the 
northern  army,  or  for  the  blessing  of  the  French  alliance, 
on  which  days  the  camp  was  exempt  from  ordinary  duty 
and  after  divine  service  the  day  was  given  over  to  the  men 
Or  I  should  like  to  tell  of  Friday  the  "Flag  day"  when 
a  flag  of  truce  was  carried  into  Philadelphia  and  letters 
were  sent  to  loved  ones,  and  answers  brought  back  con- 
taining disheartening  news  of  the  gaieties  then  going  on, 
or  encouraging  accounts  of  the  sacrifices  of  mothers  and 
daughters  in  the  cause  of  liberty.  And  finally  I  should 
like  to  tell  you  of  the  court  martials,  through  the  reports 


44  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

of  which  we  get  such  a  vivid  picture  of  the  intimate  life 
of  the  time:  of  the  trial  by  court  martial  of  Anthony 
Wayne,  who  was  acquitted  of  the  charge  of  conduct  un- 
becoming an  officer;  of  the  trial  of  a  common  soldier  for 
stealing  a  blanket  from  a  fellow  soldier,  and  the  punish- 
ment by  100  lashes  on  his  bare  back ;  of  the  trial  of  a  Mary 
Johnson  who  plotted  to  desert  the  camp  and  who,  between 
the  lined  up  ranks  of  the  brigade,  was  drummed  out  of 
camp;  of  the  trial  of  John  Riley  for  desertion,  and  his 
execution  on  parade  ground,  with  the  full  brigade  in 
attendance ;  of  the  dramatic  punishment  of  an  officer  found 
guilty  of  robbery  and  absenting  himself,  with  a  private, 
without  leave,  and  who  was  sentenced  to  have  his  sword 
broken  over  his  head  on  grand  parade  at  guard  mount.  I 
should  like  to  tell,  too,  of  the  foraging  parties  sent  out  to 
scour  the  country  for  food  and  straw;  and  the  frequent 
skirmishes  with  detachments  of  the  enemy ;  of  the  depreda- 
tions made  by  the  soldiers  on  the  surrounding  farmers, 
which  depredations  were  so  deplored  by  Washington  and 
which  tried  so  his  great  soul  I  wanted  to  speak  of  the  great- 
ness of  the  Commander-in-Chief  in  the  face  of  all  he  had  to 
contend  with — the  continued  depredations  of  his  men;  the 
repeated  abuse  of  privilege;  the  frequent  disobedience  of 
orders;  the  unavoidably  filthy  condition  of  the  camp;  the 
suffering  of  the  soldiers ;  the  peril  from  a  powerful  enemy, 
— all  sufficient  to  make  a  soul  of  less  generous  mould 
succumb  to  fate,  yet  serving  only  in  Washington's  case 
to  make  him  put  firmer  trust  in  an  Almighty  Power  and  in 
the  justice  of  his  cause. 

At  the  opening  of  the  spring  a  greater  activity  pre- 
vailed in  the  camp.  With  the  coming  of  Baron  Steuben, 
the  army  wras  uniformly  drilled  in  the  tactics  of  European 
warfare.  With  the  new  appropriation  of  congress,  new 
uniforms  were  possible  and  gave  a  more  military  appear- 
ance to  the  army.  It  was  no  longer  necessary,  therefore, 
for  Washington  to  issue  orders  that  the  men  must  appear 
on  parade  with  beards  shaven  and  faces  clean,  though 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  45 

their  garments  were  of  great  variety  and  ragged.  And 
with  the  coming  of  the  spring,  and  of  greater  comforts  in 
consequence,  Washington,  in  recognition  of  the  suffering, 
fidelity  and  patriotism  of  his  troops  took  occasion  to  com- 
mend them  in  these  words : 

"The  Commarider-in-Chief  takes  this  occasion  to  return  his 
thanks  to  the  officers  and  soldiers  of  this  army  for  that  persevering 
fidelity  and  zeal  which  they  have  uniformly  manifested  in  all  their 
conduct.  Their  fortitude  not  only  under  the  common  hardships 
incident  to  a  military  life,  but  also,  under  the  additional  suffering 
to  which  the  peculiar  situation  of  these  states  has  exposed  them, 
clearly  proves  them  to  be  men  worthy  the  enviable  privilege  of 
contending  for  the  rights  of  human  nature — the  freedom  and 
independence  of  the  country.  The  recent  instance  of  uncom- 
plaining patience  during  the  late  scarcity  of  provisions  in  camp 
is  a  fresh  proof  that  they  possess  in  eminent  degree  the  spirits  of 
soldiers  and  the  magnanimity  of  patriots.  The  few  who  disgraced 
themselves  by  murmuring,  it  is  hoped,  have  repented  such  un- 
manly behaviour  and  have  resolved  to  emulate  the  noble  example 
of  their  associates — 'Soldiers,  American  Soldiers,  will  despise  the 
meanness  of  repining  at  such  trifling  strokes  of  adversity,  trifling 
indeed  when  compared  with  the  transcendent  prize  which  will 
undoubtedly  crown  their  patience  and  perseverance. 

"Glory  and  freedom,  peace  and  plenty,  the  admiration  of  the 
world,  the  love  of  their  country  and  the  gratitude  of  prosterity." 
— -American  Monthty  Magazine. 


46  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

OLD  WILLIAMSBURG. 
BY  EMILY  HENDREE  PARK. 

The  screeching  of  the  steam  whistle  at  the  Williams- 
burg  station  seemed  a  curious  anachronism,  a  noisy,  push- 
ing impertinence,  a  strident  voice  of  latter-day  vulgar 
haste.  But  when  the  big  engine  had  rolled  away,  puffing 
and  blowing  and  screaming  as  if  in  mischievous  and  irrever- 
ent effort  to  disturb  the  archaic  dreams  of  the  fast-asleep 
town,  the  "exceeding  peace"  which  always  dwells  in  Wil- 
liamsburg,  fell  upon  our  hilarious  spirits.  We  wandered 
about  the  streets  with  hushed  voices  and  reverent  eyes. 
The  throbbing  pulse  of  the  gay,  stirring,  rebellious  heart  of 
the  old  capital  of  Virginia  had  been  still  for  a  century. 

On  entering  Bruton  church,  the  eye  is  first  attracted 
on  the  right  of  the  chancel  to  the  novel  sight  of  the  gover- 
nor's seat,  high  canopied  and  richly  upholstered  in  crim- 
son and  gilt.  The  high-backed  chair  is  railed  off  from 
the  "common  folk,"  and  the  name  Alexander  Spotswood 
in  gold  lettering  runs  around  the  top  of  the  canopy.  At 
once  you  realize  that  this  was  indeed  the  court  church  of 
the  vice-regal  court  at  Williamsburg,  and  that  you  are  in 
old  Colonial  Virginia.  The  lines  ' '  He  rode  with  Spotswood 
and  Spotswood  men,"  the  knights  of  the  "Golden  Horse 
Shoe,"  run  through  the  brain,  and  the  knightly  figure  of 
Raleigh,  the  chivalric  founder  of  the  colony,  and  brave 
John  Smith  and  a  score  of  others,  heroes  of  that  elder  day, 
come  from  out  the  shadowy  past,  and  hover  about  one. 
You  look  at  the  quaint  old  pulpit,  on  the  left  of  the  church, 
with  its  high-sounding  board,  and  then  glance  down  at 
the  pew  on  your  right,  which  bears  the  name  of  George 
Washington,  and  opposite  the  plate  on  the  pew  reads 
Thomas  Jefferson,  and  next  are  James  Madison  and  the 
seven  signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Independance,  and 
Peyton  Randolph  and  Patrick  Henry  and  the  doughty 
members  of  the  house  of  burgesses  who  worshiped  here, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  47 

and  whose  liberty-loving  spirits  fired  the  world  with  their 
brave  protests  against  tyranny.  When  you  read  these 
names,  suddenly  the  church  seems  full  of  the  men  who 
bore  them,  and  you  are  surrounded  by  that  goodly  company 
of  heroes  who  made  Virginia  and  America,  the  cradle  of 
liberty.  The  magic  spell  is  upon  you.  You  turn  cold  and 
burning  hot  with  high  enthusiasm  and  the  glory  of  the 
vision.  You  are  roused  from  your  trance  by  the  pleasant 
voice  of  the  young  minister,  Mr.  John  Wing,  who  is  saying : 
"Now  we  will  go  down  into  the  crypt." 

There  are  treasures  in  the  crypt  indeed.  We  follow  in 
a  dazed  fashion,  and  are  shown  the  Jamestown  communion 
service;  the  communion  silver  bearing  the  coat-of-arms  of 
King  George  III;  the  ancient  communion  silver  of  the 
College  of  William  and  Mary;  the  Colonial  prayer  book, 
with  the  prayer  for  the  president  pasted  over  the  prayer 
for  King  George  III;  a  parish  register  of  1662,  the  pre- 
Revolutionary  Bible;  coins  found  while  excavating  in  the 
church,  and  brass  head-tack  letters  and  figures  by  which 
some  of  the  graves  in  the  aisles  and  chancel  were  indentified. 
We  are  told  that  the  date  of  parish  was  1632,  first  brick 
church,  1674-83;  present  church  1710-15.  Precious  and 
deeply  interesting,  but  I  imagined  that  I  could  hear  the 
tread  of  that ' '  knightly  company ' '  upstairs,  who  let  neither 
silver  nor  gold  nor  the  glitter  of  the  vice-regal  court  at 
Williamsburg  seduce  them  from  their  love  of  liberty,  nor 
dull  their  hatred  of  tyranny  in  its  slightest  exercise.  Ah ! 
there  were  giants  in  those  days  among  those  Virginia 
pioneers,  in  whose  veins  ran  the  hot  blood  of  the  cavalier, 
who  loved  truth  and  hated  a  lie,  who  loved  life  and  despised 
danger,  and  feared  not  death  nor  "king  nor  kaiser," 
descendants  of  the  valiant  Jamestown  colonists  to  whom 
Nathaniel  Bacon  cried  one  hundred  years  before :  ' '  Come 
on,  my  hearts  of  gold ! ' ' 

The  tombstones  in  the  aisle  and  chancel  of  the  church 
include  the  tombs  of  two  Colonial  governors — Francis  Fau- 
quier  and  Edmund  Jennings — and  the  graves  of  the  great- 


48  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

grandfather,  the  grandfather  and  grandmother  of  Mrs. 
Martha  Washington.  After  reading  the  quaint  inscription 
on  the  marble  mural  tablet  in  memory  of  Colonel  Daniel 
Parke  and  the  inscriptions  on  the  bronze  mural  tablets 
memorial  to  Virginia  churchmen  and  patriots,  we  climb  to 
' '  Lord  Dunmore  's  gallery, ' '  where,  tradition  says,  the  boys 
of  William  and  Mary  College  used  to  be  locked  in  for  their 
soul's  edification  until  service  was  over,  and  where  we  sat 
in  Thomas  Jefferson's  accustomed  place,  from  whence  he 
looked  down  upon  the  heads  of  the  members  of  the  house 
of  burgesses  and  the  Colonial  vestrymen  of  distinguished 
memory.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  in  such  environment  the 
boy's  dreamy  aspirations  crystallized  into  the  high  resolve 
of  becoming  a  patriot  and  statesman  ?  For  in  those  stormy 
days  preceding  the  Revolution  this  little  Bruton  parish 
church  was  a  very  Pantheon  of  living  heroes. 

Fiske,  the  New  England  historian,  says  that  "the  five 
men  who  more  than  any  others  have  shaped  the  future  of 
American  history  were  Washington,  Jefferson,  Madison, 
Marshall  and  Hamilton."  All  but  Hamilton  were  Virgin- 
ians and  worshipers  at  Bruton  church,  and  two  of  them 
were  students  of  the  College  of  William  and  Mary.  Dis- 
tinction unrivaled  for  the  state,  the  church,  the  college. 

And  now  we  walk  into  the  church  yard,  under  venerable 
trees,  among  crumbling  grave  stones  and  see  the  Poca- 
hontas  baptismal  font  and  the  tombs  of  the  Custis  children 
and  Colonial  Governor  Knott. 

We  are  shown  the  home  of  George  Wythe,  the  signer  of 
the  Declaration,  the  teacher  of  Jefferson,  Monroe  and  Mar- 
shall. Great  teacher  of  greater  pupils!  Inspirer  of  high 
thoughts  and  immortal  deeds!  One  of  the  students  at 
William  and  Mary,  Jefferson,  wrote  the  declaration,  three 
were  presidents,  and  another,  John  Marshall,  was  Chief 
Justice  of  the  United  States.  The  headquarters  of  Wash- 
ington, the  site  of  the  first  theater  in  America,  1732,  the 
Ancient  Palace  green  on  the  right  hand  of  which  is  the 
fictional  home  of  Audrey,  and  several  ancient  colonial 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  49 

homes  are  pointed  out  to  us.  If  any  vestige  remains  of 
the  old  Releigh  tavern,  whose  "Apollo"  room  was  famous 
as  the  gathering  place  of  the  burgesses,  who,  after  their 
dismissal  in  1769  asked  an  agreement  not  to  use  or  import 
any  article  upon  which  a  tax  is  laid — it  was  not  shown  to 
us. 

The  old  powder  horn  or  powder  magazine,  a  curious 
hexagonal  building,  has  been  admirably  restored  and  stands 
as  a  reminder  of  that  dramatic  scene  in  Virginia  history 
in  1775  when,  after  Lord  Dunmore  had  removed  the  powder 
from  the  magazine  into  one  of  the  vessels  in  the  James, 
fearing  an  uprising  of  the  colonists,  Patrick  Henry,  with 
an  armed  force  from  Hanover,  stalked  into  the  governor's 
presence  and  demanded  the  return  of  the  powder  or  its 
equivalent  in  money.  Lord  Dunmore,  looking  into  those 
dauntless  eyes,  beholds  the  dauntless  soul  of  the  "Fire- 
brand of  the  Revolution"  behind  them,  and  yields  at  once 
and  pays  down  £330  sterling.  Patrick  Henry,  with 
splendid  audacity,  seizes  a  pen  and  signs  the  receipt, 
' '  Patrick  Henry,  Jr. ' '  making  himself  alone  responsible  for 
this  act  of  high  treason,  and  then,  that  there  may  be  no 
doubt  as  to  his  signature,  he  has  it  attested  by  two  dis- 
tinguished gentlemen.  What  heroic  daring!  What  im- 
passioned love  of  liberty!  While  Peyton,  Randolph  and 
Richard  Henry  Lee  counsel  caution,  Patrick  Henry  acts 
and  becomes  the  inspired  genius  of  the  revolution,  fusing 
the  disunited  and  hesitating  colonies  into  a  nation  by  the 
white  heat  of  his  burning  passion  for  freedom. 

First  in  importance  of  all  the  historic  places  in  Wil- 
liamsburg  is  the  venerable  college  of  William  and  Mary. 
Founded  in  1693,  next  to  Harvard  the  oldest  college  in  the 
United  States,  it  soon  became  the  ' '  intellectual  center  of  the 
colony  of  Chesapeake  Bay, ' '  the  alma  mater  of  the  patriots 
who  fought  for  the  life  of  the  young  republic  and  of  the 
statesmen  who  formed  its  constitution  and  guided  its  course 
in  its  infant  years.  It  has  furnished  to  our  country  fifteen 
senators  and  seventy  representatives  in  congress;  thirty- 


50  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

seven  judges,  and  Chief  Justice  Marshall;  "seventeen 
governors  of  states  and  three  presidents  of  the  United 
States — Jefferson,  Monroe  and  Tyler.  James  JBlair,  a 
Scotchman,  was  its  first  president  and  remained  so  for  fifty 
years.  The  ivy-clad  buildings  of  the  old  college  nestle 
among  ancient  trees  on  a  wide  campus,  and  so  venerable 
is  the  look  of  the  place  that  the  new  hall  seems  a  modern 
intruder,  though  of  quiet  and  well-mannered  architecture. 
The  quiet  air  of  scholarly  seclusion  reminds  one  of  Oxford. 
It  was  commencement  day,  and  we  found  the  buildings 
decorated  with  white  and  yellow,  the  college  colors.  The 
chapel,  with  its  oil  paintings  of  presidents,  donors  and 
patriots,  and  the  library  with  its  rare  volumes  and  price- 
less old  documents  and  portraits  and  engravings,  are  full 
of  interest.  A  marble  statue  of  one  of  the  old  governors — 
Botetourt,  I  believe — stands  in  the  silence  of  the  centuries 
in  front  of  the  old  college. 

"Yas'm  ris  de  place,  de  house  er  buggesses,  dey  call 
it,  'cause  de  big  bugs  of  ole  Virginny  sot  dere  er  making 
laws.  'Fo  de  Lawd,  marm,  dey  wuz  big  bugs ;  quality  folks, 
quality  folks."  And  John  Randolph,  our  colored  coach- 
man, waved  his  hand  with  a  proud  air  of  ownership,  as  if 
he  were  displaying  lofty  halls  with  mahogany  stairs  and 
marble  pillars,  instead  of  the  mortar  and  brick  foundation, 
in  its  bare  outline,  of  the  old  capitol,  or  House  of 
Burgesses. 

"Walk  right  in,  suh.  Bring  de  ladies  dis  way,  boss," 
John  Randolph  urged,  in  a  tone  of  lordly  hospitality. 
"Right  hyah  is  the  charmber  (room)  whar  Marse  Patrick 
Henry  made  dat  great  speech  agin  de  king — old  Marse 
King  George — or  bossin'  uv  de  colonies.  He  wuz  er 
standing  on  dis  very  spot,  and  he  lif '  up  his  voice  like  a 
lion  and  he  sez,  sez  he — " 

"What  did  he  say?"  as  the  old  man  paused. 

Striking  a  dramatic  attitude,  the  gray-haired  old 
Virginia  darky  rolled  out  in  sonorous  voice,  with  impas- 
sioned gesture: 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  51 

"Tarquin  and  Caesar  had  each  his  Brutus,  Charles  the 
First  his  Cromwell  and  George  the  Third — "  "Treason! 
treason!"  said  the  speaker  of  the  house.  "May  profit  by 
their  example.  If  that  be  treason,  make  the  most  of  it." 

In  spite  of  John  Randolph's  oratory,  RothermeFs  paint- 
ing came  before  me,  and  I  could  see  the  Virginia  cavaliers 
gazing  at  the  speaker  with  startled,  breathless  look,  while 
the  colonial  dames  with  their  powdered  hair  and  stiff 
brocade  leaned  eagerly  forward  in  the  gallery  to  catch  each 
note  of  the  immortal  voice;  and  in  the  doorway  stood 
Thomas  Jefferson,  the  slim  young  student  of  William  and 
Mary  College,  electrified  by  the  fiery  eloquence,  "such  as 
I  had  never  heard  from  any  other  man,"  he  said:  "he 
appeared  to  me  to  speak  as  Homer  wrote." 

"But  why  didn't  you  say  'Give  me  liberty  or  give  me 
death,'  Uncle  John?"  asked  the  young  interrogation  point 
of  the  party. 

' '  'Cause  Marse  Patrick  never  said  dem  words  here, 
chile.  He  spoke  'em  in  old  St.  John's  Church  up  in  Rich- 
mond ten  year  arterwards.  I  gin  you  his  Williamsburg 
speech,  his  fust  great  speech. ' '  And  the  darky  orator  and 
historian  smiled  with  that  superior  wisdom  which  we  had 
seen  illumminate  the  dark  Italian  features  of  Antonio 
Griffenreid,  the  famous  sexton  of  old  St.  John's  as  he 
enlightened  the  ignorance  of  a  party  of  sightseers — Atlanta 
Constitution. 


52  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


SONG  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

We  love  the  men  and  women,  too, 

Who  fought  and  worked  and  brought  us  through 

Our  glorious  revolution; 
Hard  was  the  struggle,  brave  the  fight, 
That  won  for  them  the  sovereign  right 

To  frame  a  Constitution. 

CHORUS. 

This  Constitution  made  us  free 
In  this  proud  land  of  liberty — 

The  best  in  all  creation — 
And  we'll  stand  by  it  while  we  live; 
Whatever  we  may  have  we'll  give 

For  its  perpetuation. 

Our  Country  is  the  fairest  one 
Kissed  by  the  ever  rolling  sun — 

We  glory  in  our  nation ; 

And  we  will  see  that  it  shall  be 
The  happy  land  of  liberty, 

Through  time's  continuation. 

— Francis  H.  Orme. 

This  song  has  been  adopted  as  a  State  song  by  the 
Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution  of  Georgia,  and  as 
a  national  song  by  the  Continental  Congress  1906. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  53 

A  TRUE  STORY  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

BY  MRS.  M.  S.  D  'VAUGHN. 
Archibald  Bullock  Chapter,  D.  A.  E.,  Montezuma,  Oa. 

This  is  a  story  of  how  a  woman 's  wit  and  tact  saved  her 
husband's  life  from  the  hands  of  the  Tories,  in  the  dark 
days  of  the  Revolution. 

It  was  in  South  Carolina,  the  British  General,  Corn- 
wallis,  had  ordered  any  American  sympathizer  caught,  to 
be  hung  or  shot  at  sight.  Numberless  outrages  had  been 
done  and  the  feeling  was  intensely  bitter  against  the  Tories, 
or  Royalists,  as  they  called  themselves.  Especially  so  was 
it  in  the  section  of  the  country  where  lived  Elizabeth 
Robert.  Her  husband  was  fighting  with  Marion,  the 
"Swamp  Fox,"  in  another  part  of  the  state  and  the  only 
protector  for  herself  and  two  young  children  was  a  faith- 
ful slave  called  "Daddy  Cyrus."  Here  on  her  plantation 
Elizabeth  spent  her  days  living  quietly  enough.  However, 
she  was  no  idler,  but  rather  a  most  thrifty  housewife  and 
her  muscadine  wine  excelled  any  other  and  was  known  far 
and  wide  for  its  delicious  flavor. 

Now,  John  Robert  grew  restless,  as  the  days  passed 
and  no  word  came  from  his  wife,  so  obtaining  leave  of 
absence  from  General  Marion,  he  quietly  slipped  through 
the  lines,  and  by  a  devious  route,  appeared  one  dark  night 
at  the  door  of  his  home.  But  some  foreign  eye  had  noted 
the  unusual  happiness  and  excitement  in  the  "big  house" 
as  it  was  called,  and  in  a  short  while  it  was  surrounded,  and 
Capt.  John  was  a  prisoner  in  the  hands  of  the  Tories. 
Mary,  with  tears,  pleaded  for  her  husband's  life,  but  to  no 
purpose,  and  dawn  was  to  see  his  dead  body  hanging  from 
the  limb  of  a  huge  oak  near  by.  Tears  availing  nothing, 
Elizabeth 's  quick  brain  began  to  teem  with  plans  for  John 's 
escape. 

Slipping  down  to  "Daddy  Cyrus'  "  cabin,  she  told  him 
of  her  plan  of  rescue,  then  back  to  her  house  she  ran,  her 


54  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

absence  not  having  been  noted.  Then  bringing  all  her 
womanly  beauty,  graciousness  and  charm  to  bear  upon  the 
Tories,  she  inticed  them  into  the  dining  room,  leaving  her 
husband  tightly  bound  to  the  tree  where  he  was  to  meet 
his  death, — and  then  from  her  mahogany  sideboard,  she 
served  to  them  her  famous  muscadine  wine.  Drink  after 
drink,  she  offered  them,  while  her  smiles  and  gay  repartee 
allured  them.  More — more — and  yet  more,  until  their 
befuddled  wits  were  completely  gone. 

Then  faithful  old  "Daddy  Cyrus"  waiting,  watching, 
guarding,  with  his  sharp  knife,  cut  the  bonds  of  his  "Young 
Marster, ' '  and  into  the  darkness  Capt.  John  was  gone  back 
to  his  comrades  with  a  hurried  kiss  from  the  lips  of  his 
wife  who  had  saved  him. 

The  Tories  were  persuaded  that  the  wine  was  the  cause 
of  their  hazy  belief  of  the  capture  of  Capt.  John  Robert, 
and  no  harm  was  done  to  Elizabeth. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  55 


GEORGIA. 

Poem  composed  by  Mrs.  C.  M.  O'Hara  and  read  before 
David  Meriwether  Chapter,  Greenville,  Ga.,  Georgia  day, 
1911. 

Georgia,  the  baby  of  the  original  thirteen, 

Not,  however,  youngest  in  importance,  I  ween, 

Was  born  to  the  colonies  in  seventeen  thirty-two, 

To  help  those  in  prison  their  lives  to  renew. 

What  Oglethorpe  planned  for  this  child  of  his  heart 

Was  that  rum  and  slaves  of  it  should  not  be  a  part, 

But  this  wayward  child  would  have  her  own  way, 

In  spite  of  her  mistakes  she  has  made  up  to  date, 

Georgia  is  called  of  the  South  the  Empire  State. 

She  was  the  fifth  of  her  sisters  in  secession  to  say, 

"The  Union  she'd  leave"  when  there  was  not  fair  play. 

This  child  of  famous  men  has  sent  her  portion 

From  the  "marshes  of  Glynn"  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

Near  Savannah,  where  Oglethorpe  first  planted  his  foot, 

Ebenezer,  the  first  orphanage,  has  taken  firm  root. 

Another  distinction,  too,  fair  Georgia  can  claim 

Is  the  first  college  for  women,  Wesleyan  by  name. 

Towering  intellects  she  reared  in  her  Toombs  and  her  Hills; 

She  can  boast  of  her  factories  and  her  mills; 

She  has  kept  pace  with  her  sisters  in  every  movement 

That  tends  to  her  children's  uplift  and  improvement. 

Now  in  heathen  lands,  across  the  deep  waters, 

Performing  deeds  of  mercy  are  Georgia's  sons  and  daughters. 


56  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

FORTS  OF  GEORGIA. 

Miss  FRANCIS  CLARKE. 

Prize  Essay  of  Girls'  High  School,  Atlanta,  Georgia,  for 

the  loving  cup  offered  by  Joseph  Habersham  Chapter, 

Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution. 

The  forts  of  Georgia,  though  for  the  most  part  hur- 
riedly and  roughly  built  for  protection  against  Indian, 
Spaniards,  Englishman,  or  Federal,  have  nevertheless  been 
the  scenes  of  the  bravest  defenses,  of  the  most  courageous 
deeds.  In  them  probably  more  than  anywhere  else,  the 
men  of  Georgia  have  shown  their  hardy  spirits  and  dis- 
tressing trials.  Never  has  a  Georgia  fort  been  surrendered 
except  from  absolute  necessity,  though  its  protectors  were 
weak  from  starvation. 

The  first  of  the  long  list  of  five  hundred  forts  that  have 
been  erected  in  Georgia  is  Fort  Charles,  on  the  northeastern 
coast  of  Georgia.  It  was  built  about  1562  by  the  direction 
of  John  Ribault,  who  with  a  party  of  Huguenots  had  come 
from  France  with  the  approval  of  Admiral  Coligny,  the 
Protestant  leader  at  that  time.  Two  years  later  the  fort 
was  abandoned,  and  there  is  now  no  sign  to  point  out  the 
spot  where  it  once  stood. 

FORT  ARGYLE. 

Fort  Argyle  was  the  next  fort  on  Georgia  soil.  It  was 
built  by  Oglethorpe  in  1733  for  the  protection  of  his 
Savannah  colony.  Then  followed  a  wonderful  series  of 
forts,  when  you  consider  the  few  people  in  Georgia  at  that 
time  and  the  dangers  of  traveling  on  account  of  the  Indians. 
But  Oglethorpe,  braving  all  perils  in  the  next  four  or  five 
years  had  established  Forts  Thunderbolt,  near  Savannah; 
St.  Simon,  on  St.  Simon's  Island;  Frederick,  at  Frederica, 
on  the  same  island;  Fort  William  and  Fort  Andrews,  on 
Cumberland  Island,  besides  several  other  unimportant  ones 
such  as  the  fort  on  Jekyl  Island  and  those  along  the  Alta- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  57 

maha.  These  forts,  especially  Fort  William  and  Fort 
Andrews,  served  as  a  great  protection  from  the  Indians 
and  the  Spaniards;  but  as  time  went  on,  the  Spaniards 
ceased  invading  the  country,  the  Indians  were  forced  west- 
ward, and  the  forts  fell  into  disuse.  Indeed  by  the  opening 
of  the  Revolution,  scarcely  a  vestige  remained  of  these  once 
important  forts. 

For  some  years  preceding  the  Revolution  the  white 
settlers  on  the  frontier  had  much  trouble  with  the  Indians, 
and  they  began  to  build  forts  inland  to  the  westward.  In 
1774,  at  Fort  Sherrill's,  about  three  hundred  men,  women 
and  children  were  massacred.  These  dreadful  massacres 
continued  all  during  the  Revolution  at  the  instigation  of 
the  British,  and  added  to  the  many  other  troubles  of  the 
Georgians  the  expense  of  keeping  up  these  frontier  forts. 

At  the  opening  of  the  Revolution,  though  the  forts  were 
in  sad  repair,  nevertheless  there  was  a  great  rush  of  the 
Royalists  and  of  the  Rebels  to  get  possession  of  them.  The 
Royalists  were  at  first  the  more  successful.  Augusta  with 
Forts  Grierson  and  Cornwallis,  Savannah  with  Forts 
Argyle  and  Halifax,  Fort  Barrington  on  the  Altamaha, 
and  the  recently  erected  Fort  Morris  south  of  Sunbury, 
were  all  soon  in  the  hands  of  the  British.  These  positions 
were  all  strong  and  well  fortified.  The  Rebels  were  not 
nearly  so  fortunate,  The  forts  they  held  were  mostly 
ruins.  Fort  Mclntosh  on  the  Satilla  River  was  the  first  of 
their  possessions  to  be  beseiged  by  the  British.  Captain 
Richard  Winn  held  the  fort  with  all  his  powers  of  endur- 
ance against  Colonel  Fuser,  but,  with  his  reinforcements 
cut  off,  he  was  soon  obliged  to  surrender. 

PROCEED  AGAINST  AUGUSTA. 

Soon,  however,  the  opportunity  of  the  patriots  came. 
1781  was  the  beginning  of  the  change  in  affairs.  Having 
seized  Fort  Carr  and  Fort  Howe  as  the  center  of  operations, 
the  Americans  proceeded  against  Augusta.  Colonel  Grier- 
son, who  was  in  charge  of  the  fort  that  bore  his  name, 


58  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

soon  surrendered  here,  but  Colonel  Brown  was  obstinate 
and  strong  in  his  position  at  Fort  Cornwallis.  In  the 
end,  after  an  eighteen  days'  siege,  he,  too,  acknowledged 
himself  beaten. 

After  varying  vicissitudes,  the  British  were  finally 
forced  to  give  up  all  their  strongholds,  and  thus  the  Revolu- 
tionary forts  played  their  part  in  history. 

During  the  years  that  followed  there  would  have  been 
no  necessity  for  any  forts  in  Georgia  had  it  not  been  for 
the  Indians,  especially  during  the  war  of  1812,  in  which 
the  Indians  were  incited  by  the  British  to  give  trouble. 
Until  1836  the  forts  in  most  general  use  against  the  In- 
dians were  Forts  Hawkins,  Mims,  Scott  and  Mitchell. 

With  the  passing  of  the  Indian  troubles  the  Georgia 
forts  were  left  to  absolute  ruin,  and,  when  in  1861  the  Civil 
War  burst  upon  the  country,  there  was  great  need  to 
fortify  the  land  against  the  enemy.  Accordingly,  Fort 
Pulaski,  on  Cockspur  Island,  not  far  from  Savannah,  was 
strongly  fortified  at  the  cost  of  $80,000,  and  Colonel  Olm- 
stead  with  350  men  was  placed  in  command.  Receiving 
word  from  the  enemy  to  surrender  the  fort,  he  answered, 
"I  am  here  to  defend  the  fort,  not  to  surrender  it";  but 
in  1862  the  brave  commander  was  obliged  to  surrender  his 
treasure. 

DuPoNT  EXPEDITION. 

Fort  McAllister,  though  not  so  strong  as  Fort  Pulaski, 
being  only  an  earthwork  with  sand  parapets,  was  notwith- 
standing an  equally  important  position.  Admiral  du  Pont 
in  1863  was  sent  to  seize  it,  but  the  expedition  failed;  in 
1864,  General  Hazen's  division  of  General  Sherman's  army 
took  this  fort  from  Major  George  W.  Anderson.  In  his 
letter  north,  General  Sherman  praised  Georgia's  sons  for 
their  brave  resistance.  The  surrender  of  Fort  McAllister 
led  in  a  few  days  to  the  surrender  of  Savannah  and  the 
quick  ending  of  the  war. 

After  the  Civil  War,  forts  were  again  neglected  and 
even  the  new  forts  began  to  decay.  Throughout  Georgia 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  59 

today  are  to  be  seen  her  picturesque,  ivy-grown  forts,  and 
these  are  a  source  of  never-failing  interest  to  visitors. 

The  only  regular  military  post  now  in  Georgia  is  the 
beautiful  Fort  McPherson.  This  fort  covering  about  two 
hundred  and  thirty-six  acres,  is  four  miles  from  Atlanta. 
It  was  established  by  the  United  States  government  in  1867 
with  the  name  of  McPherson 's  Barracks ;  it  has  a  postoffice 
and  telegraph  station.  It  has  never  yet  been  called  into 
service.  Let  us  hope  that  it  will  be  many  days  before  Fort 
McPherson  adds  its  historic  story  to  those  of  Georgia's 
ether  forts. 


JAMES  EDWARD  OGLETHORPE. 

James  Oglethorpe  came  of  a  very  old  family  in  England. 
His  father,  Sir  Theophilus,  was  a  soldier  under  James  II, 
and  went  into  banishment  with  him.  Just  before  the 
abdication  of  James  II,  James  Oglethorpe,  the  seventh 
child  and  fourth  son,  was  born.  At  sixteen  he  entered  the 
University  at  Oxford,  when  he  was  twenty-two,  entered  the 
British  Army  as  Ensign,  and  was  soon  made  Lieutenant  of 
the  Queen 's  Life  Guards.  His  soldier  life  was  spent  largely 
on  the  continent.  He  became  heir  to  the  estate  in  Surrey 
and  was  shortly  after  elected  to  the  British  Parliament,  of 
which  body  he  remained  a  member  for  thirty-two  years. 
He  was  an  active  member  of  the  House  of  Commons,  a 
Deputy  Governor  of  the  Royal  African  Society  and  a 
gentleman  of  high  position  and  independent  means,  and 
withal  a  man  of  genuine  piety.  He  conceived  the  plan  of 
establishing  a  colony  in  America,  which  should  be  a  refuge 
for  poor  people. 

The  following  description  of  Oglethorpe  is  by  Rev. 
Thomas  B.  Gregory : 

"February  12,  1733,  Oglethorpe  and  his  Colonists  scaled 
the  Yamacraw  bluffs  on  the  Savannah  River  and  began 
laying  the  foundations  of  the  State  of  Georgia. 


60  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

"The  Empire  State  of  the  South  had  its  origin  in  the 
noblest  impulses  that  swell  the  human  heart.  Its  founder, 
the  accomplished  and  philanthropic  Oglethorpe,  witnessing 
about  him  in  the  old  world  the  inhumanity  of  man  to  man, 
seeing  the  prisons  full  of  impecunious  debtors,  and  the 
highways  thronged  with  the  victims  of  religious  fanaticism 
and  spite,  resolved  that  he  would  find  in  the  new  world 
an  asylum  for  the  unfortunate  ones  where  they  should  be 
no  more  oppressed  by  the  rich  or  dragooned  by  the  bigoted. 

The  colony  started  out  beautifully.  The  men  who  had 
been  pining  in  English  jails  because  they  could  not  pay  the 
exactions  of  their  hard-hearted  creditors,  and  the  Salzbur- 
gers  and  others,  who,  in  Austria  and  Germany,  had  been 
made  to  feel  the  terrors  of  religious  fanaticism,  were  glad 
to  be  free,  and  they  were  only  too  willing  to  accept  the 
founder's  will  that  there  would  be  no  slavery  in  Georgia. 
The  institution  got  a  foothold  much  later  on,  but  it  was  not 
the  fault  of  the  original  colonists. 

Beautiful,  too,  were  the  initial  relationships  between  the 
colonists  and  the  red  men.  Old  To-mo-chi-chi,  the  Chief  of 
the  surrounding  Indians,  presenting  Oglethorpe  with  a 
Buffalo  skin  ornamented  with  the  picture  of  an  eagle,  said 
to  him :  '  I  give  you  this  which  I  want  you  to  accept.  The 
eagle  means  speed  and  the  buffalo  strength.  The  English 
are  swift  as  the  bird  and  strong  as  the  beast,  since  like  the 
one,  they  flew  over  the  seas  to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the 
earth,  and,  like  the  other,  they  are  strong  and  nothing  can 
resist  them.  The  feathers  of  the  eagle  are  soft  and  means 
love ;  the  buffalo  skin  is  warm  and  means  protection.  Then 
I  hope  the  English  will  love  and  protect  our  little  families. ' 
Alas!  the  time  was  to  come  when  the  white  man  would 
forget  To-mo-chi-chi 's  present  and  the  spirit  with  which  it 
was  made. 

In  1743  Oglethorpe  left  Georgia  forever,  after  having 
given  it  the  best  that  there  was  in  his  head  and  heart  for 
ten  years.  In  1752  Georgia  became  a  royal  province,  and 
remained  such  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolution  in 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  61 

1775,  through  which  she  helped  her  sister  colonies  to  fight 
their  way  to  victory,  when  she  took  her  place  among  the 
"old  thirteen"  free  and  independent  states. 


THE    CONDITION    OF   GEORGIA    DURING   THE 
REVOLUTION. 

When  the  American  Colonies  of  Great  Britain  deter- 
mined to  rebel  at  the  stubborn  demands  of  the  mother 
country,  Georgia  had  least  cause  to  join  the  revolutionary 
movement. 

This  colony  was  by  fifty  years  the  youngest  of  the 
"original  thirteen,"  and  had  been  specially  favored  by 
England.  She  was  the  largest,  but  the  weakest,  of  all  the 
provinces.  The  landless  of  other  countries  and  of  other 
colonies  had  come  in  large  numbers  to  obtain  a  home  where 
they  might  own  the  soil  they  tilled.  At  the  beginning  of  the 
Revolution  the  total  population  of  Georgia  was  about 
20,000  whites  and  17,000  blacks. 

Georgia  was  now  exporting  rice,  indigo,  and  skins  to 
Europe,  and  lumber,  horses,  and  provisions  to  the  "West 
Indies.  Tobacco  was  cultivated  with  great  success  by  the 
settlers,  and  all  necessaries  of  life  were  easily  raised  on  her 
soil. 

The  province  boasted  of  one  weekly  newspaper,  called 
the  "Georgia  Gazette,"  which  was  published  every  Thurs- 
day at  Savannah. 

Since  1760  the  colony  had  prospered  greatly  under  Sir 
James  Wright,  who  was  one  of  the  most  capable  and 
devoted  of  the  British  provincial  governors.  There  were 
few  local  grievances,  and  many  of  the  people  did  not  wish 
to  defy  the  home  authority. 

But  they  realized  that  this  restful  condition  could  not 
long  continue,  for  they  occupied  an  exceedingly  dangerous 
position.  The  sea  coast  was  easily  seized  by  the  British, 
and  they  were  also  exposed  to  the  attacks  of  the  British  in 


62  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Florida,  as  well  as  the  many  savage  tribes  of  Indians  on 
the  north  and  west. 

Thus  threatened  on  all  sides,  Georgia  thought  it  best  to 
join  her  sister  colonies,  that  she  might  have  protection. 

The  news  of  the  battle  of  Lexington  removed  all  hesita- 
tion, and  united  the  people  of  Georgia  in  the  determination 
to  assert  their  rights.  Georgia  rallied  her  mountaineer 
riflemen  to  the  cause  of  liberty. 

Right  manfully  did  her  raw,  untrained  volunteers  re- 
spond to  the  burning,  eloquent  appeal  of  Patrick  Henry, 
the  Virginian.  His  speech  awoke  the  sleeping  pride  of  the 
South,  and  aroused  her  sons  to  action. 

Georgia  strove  to  equip  her  little  band  of  patriots,  but 
she  had  but  few  resources.  Congress  gave  her  all  the  aid  pos- 
sible, but  soldiers  and  funds  were  required  everywhere, 
and  Georgia's  share  was  very  small.  Her  sole  dependence 
for  protection  was  her  3,000  raw  militia.  There  were 
40,000  Indians  to  the  north  and  west  with  10,000  warriors ! 

The  British  bought  the  friendship  of  the  Indians  with 
presents  which  the  colonists  could  not  afford. 

From  the  first  of  this  war  Georgia  kept  her  representa- 
tives in  the  Continental  Congress,  which  met  to  form 
plans  for  mutual  protection  and  defense.  In  these  dark 
days  men  thought  little  of  government,  nor  was  much 
required.  Liberty  and  food  and  clothing  for  their  families 
were  the  principals  for  which  the  patriots  were  now 
striving. 

Many  deserters  of  the  American  cause  took  refuge  in 
Florida.  These  were  called  Tories.  Many  of  them  were 
lawless  men,  and  continually  harassed  the  colonists  of 
South  Georgia.  They  joined  the  British  and  Indians,  and 
made  plundering  expeditions,  sweeping  down  on  the 
defenseless  people,  burning  the  houses,  ruining  the  fields, 
and  committing  the  most  atrocious  crimes. 

Up  to  this  time,  Georgia  had  often  sent  food  supplies 
to  her  countrymen  in  the  north,  but  now  food  became  so 


63 

scarce  that  the  governor  forbade  the  exportation  of  any 
kind  of  provisions. 

Colonel  Brown,  who  vowed  to  wreak  vengeance  on 
every  American  citizen,  now  fulfilled  his  vow  to  the  utter- 
most. His  murderous  bands  made  their  raids  in  every 
direction ;  no  mercy  was  shown  to  anyone  who  befriended  a 
patriot. 

It  seems  that  the  spirit  of  resistance  in  the  hearts  of  the 
people  of  Georgia  would  have  been  crushed  by  these  long 
continued  atrocities.  But  they  never  left  the  field,  although 
often  forced  to  abandon  their  homes  and  sometimes  even 
to  leave  the  state. 

What  better  example  of  the  hardihood  of  the  pioneer 
women  of  Georgia  than  in  the  story  of  Nancy  Hart,  a 
remarkable  woman  who  lived  in  Elbert  County  at  this 
time? 

When  many  of  the  women  and  children  who  lived  in 
her  neighborhood  left  their  homes  to  escape  the  cruelty  of 
Brown's  raiders,  Nancy  Hart  remained  at  home  to  protect 
her  little  property. 

How  we  all  love  the  story  of  how  this  rough,  simple 
mountaineer  woman  outwitted  the  band  of  British  red 
coats  who  demanded  food  at  her  cabin. 

While  she  served  the  meal,  she  cleverly  managed  to 
keep  their  attention  diverted  while  she  signaled  for  aid, 
and  hid  their  arms,  which  they  had  stacked  in  a  corner. 
Then,  when  she  was  discovered,  she  covered  them  with  a 
musket,  and,  true  to  her  word,  shot  down  the  first  who 
stepped  forward. 

Thus  did  the  women  of  Georgia  meet  the  dangers  to 
which  they  were  exposed  in  these  perilous  times. 

When  Augusta  had  been  abandoned  by  the  British, 
many  of  the  inhabitants  who  had  refugeed,  returned,  hop- 
ing for  better  times.  Colonels  Elizah  Clarke  and  John 
Dooly  untiringly  guarded  the  frontiers,  which  were  con- 
tinually threatened  by  the  Tories  and  Indians.  Their  zeal 


64  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

encouraged  the  people,  and  kept  the  spirit  of  liberty  awake 
in  the  hearts  of  the  sorely-tried  patriots. 

But  their  sufferings  were  not  yet  over.  Savannah  must 
yet  be  taken  from  the  British.  In  the  long,  weary  struggle, 
the  brave  revolutionists  were  greatly  aided  by  the  French. 

The  bombardment  of  Savannah  lasted  five  days.  The 
unfortunate  inhabitants  suffered  greatly.  Houses  were 
riddled  by  shot  and  shell.  Helpless  women,  children,  and 
old  men  were  forced  to  seek  safety  in  damp  cellars,  and 
even  then,  many  were  killed  by  shots  intended  for  the 
enemy. 

How  sad  to  think  of  the  many  precious  lives  lost  in 
that  bloody  fray,  and  the  hopes  crushed  in  the  hearts 
of  the  survivors ! 

The  British  still  held  Savannah,  the  French  sailed 
away,  and  the  American  army  retreated  northward,  leaving 
Georgia  to  the  enemy. 

The  death  blow  had  been  dealt  to  the  hopes  of  Georgia. 
The  Tories,  exulting  in  the  humiliation  of  the  state,  now 
made  raids  in  every  direction,  insulting,  robbing,  and 
persecuting,  the  discouraged  patriots  barbarously.  They 
seized  whatever  they  coveted,  clothing,  jewels,  plate,  fur- 
niture or  negroes.  They  even  beat  little  children  to  force 
them  to  tell  where  valuables  were  hidden. 

No  mercy  was  shown  to  old  men  who  had  stayed  at 
home  to  protect  their  families.  They  and  their  families 
were  driven  from  the  state.  All  means  of  conveyance  being 
taken  away,  even  the  women  and  children  were  forced  to 
make  the  journey  on  foot.  But  the  majority  of  our  people 
were  so  poor  that  they  were  obliged  to  remain  at  home, 
and  endure  trials  more  grievous  than  before. 

The  conduct  of  British  soldiers  in  Savannah  was  such 
that  Whig  families  residing  there  found  it  almost  un- 
endurable. But  the  women  bore  these  hardships  with  a 
fortitude  becoming  the  wives  of  patriots. 

At  last,  three  years  after  the  seige  of  Savannah, 
Georgia  was  free  of  the  hated  British.  Gradually  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  65 

people  returned  to  their  former  homes  and  vocations.  But 
what  a  sad  home-coming !  War  had  laid  its  desolating  hand 
upon  the  face  of  the  country. 

The  state  was  full  of  widows  and  orphans,  fully  one 
half  of  all  the  available  property  of  her  people  was  swept 
away,  the  fields  were  uncultivated,  and  there  was  no  money 
to  repair  losses.  Her  boundaries  were  not  well  defined, 
and  large  tracts  of  land  in  her  limits  were  still  held  by  the 
Indians.  Truly,  the  condition  of  Georgia  was  deplorable ! 

But  there  was  no  repining,  for  the  patriots,  rejoicing  in 
their  liberty,  cheerfully  set  to  work  to  lay  the  foundations 
of  future  prosperity.  Gladly  they  had  given  their  all  as 
the  price  of  Liberty ! — Etowah  Chapter. 


FORT   RUTLEDGE    OF   THE    REVOLUTION. 

BY  MRS.  P.  H.  MELL. 

When  the  Calhoun  plantation  (in  South  Carolina), 
upon  which  Clemson  College  is  now  located,  was  purchased 
in  1826,  it  was  called  ' '  Clergy  Hall. ' '  It  received  this  name 
because  the  original  mansion  was  built  by  the  Rev.  James 
Mcllhenny  who  resided  there  with  his  son-in-law,  the  Rev. 
James  Murphy.  An  old  Revolutionary  fort  known  in 
history  as  Fort  Rutledge  was  upon  this  estate,  crowning  a 
hill  overlooking  the  Seneca  River  and  when  Mr.  Calhoun 
took  possession  of  the  place,  he  changed  its  name  to  "Fort 
Hill. ' '  Although  fifty  years  had  elapsed  since  the  fort  was 
built  and  doubtless  there  were  few  remains  of  it  to  be  seen 
at  that  time,  still  many  were  living  who  remembered  it 
well,  and  the  hill  upon  which  it  stood  was  known  from  the 
earliest  settlement  of  the  country  by  the  name  of  "Fort 
Hill." 

One  of  the  most  beautiful  drives  on  the  Clemson 
property  is  the  road  to  Fort  Rutledge  which  is  about  a  mile 
from  the  college.  This  road  winds  through  rich  cornfields 


66 

of  bottom  land;  it  then  rises  gently  to  the  top  of  a  long 
level  ridge  which  slopes  precipitously  down  to  the  fields  on 
one  hand  and  the  Seneca  River  on  the  other;  trees  and 
shrubs  thickly  clothe  the  sides  of  this  ridge  and  beautiful 
and  extended  views  can  be  seen  in  every  direction.  Looking 
to  the  east,  Clemson  College,  seated  upon  an  opposite  hill, 
with  its  many  buildings  and  the  dwellings  of  the  com- 
munity presents  an  ideal  picture  of  loveliness ;  on  the  north, 
the  Blue  Ridge  mountains,  forty  miles  away,  are  clearly 
seen  with  several  lofty  ranges ;  to  the  west  and  south,  the 
eye  follows  the  river  winding  through  smiling  valleys,  the 
cultivated  fields  green  with  promise  which  is  always  ful- 
filled. 

This  boldly  commanding  ridge,  overlooking  the  sur- 
rounding country,  was  well  adapted  for  an  outlook  during 
the  conflicts  between  the  Indians  and  the  early  settlers. 
The  Seneca  Indians  had  one  of  their  largest  towns  on  the 
river  at  the  base  of  the  hill,  extending  for  four  miles  on 
both  sides,  the  hundreds  of  acres  of  inexhaustible  bottom 
land  supplying  them  bountifully  with  corn  even  with  the 
crudest  methods  of  cultivation. 

Nothing  remains  of  the  old  fort  to-day  but  the  aban- 
doned well,  which  has  been  filled  and  is  marked  by  a  tangled 
growth  of  weeds  and  shrubs,  and  the  cellar  of  the  old 
lookout  tower  or  five  sided  bastion ;  this  is  faced  with  brick 
and  the  shape  can  be  seen  distinctly. 

One  of  the  early  battles  of  the  Revolution  was  fought 
near  Fort  Hill  at  Seneca  town  at  its  base.  This  town  was 
one  of  note  among  the  Indians  and  up  to  this  day  arrow 
heads  and  other  implements  of  war  or  household  use  may  be 
found  upon  its  site.  For  generations  the  Indians  preserved 
a  strong  attachment  for  this  spot  and  up  to  the  time  that 
the  college  began  its  active  work,  "Bushy  Head,"  an 
Indian  Chief  from  the  Cherokee  reservation  in  North 
Carolina,  would  lead  a  band  here  every  summer. 

The  story  of  the  battle  here  is  taken  from  official  reports 
and  from  McCrady's  "History  of  South  Carolina." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  67 

During  the  spring  of  1776,  the  Tory  leaders,  Stuart  and 
Cameron,  had  informed  the  Cherokees  that  a  British  fleet 
was  coming  to  attack  Charleston  and  as  soon  as  they  heard 
of  its  arrival  they  must  fall  upon  the  up-country  pioneer 
settlements  and  destroy  them.  With  the  British  to  fight 
in  the  south  and  the  combined  Tories  and  Indians  in  the 
north  it  was  believed  that  the  province  would  soon  be 
subjugated.  The  news  came  to  the  Indians  on  the  eve  of 
July  1st  and  at  the  dawn  of  day  they  were  on  the  warpath 
slaying  every  white  person  they  could  capture,  without 
distinction  of  age  or  sex.  At  this  time  the  Hamptons  were 
massacred  with  many  other  families. 

Mr.  Francis  Salvador  lived  on  Corn-acre  or  Coronaca 
creek  in  Ninety-six  district.  He  was  one  of  the  few  mem- 
bers of  the  provincial  congress  from  the  up-country,  a  man 
of  much  ability,  enthusiasm  and  patriotism.  When  the 
dreadful  tidings  of  the  Indian  uprising  reached  him  that 
day,  he  mounted  his  horse  and  galloped  to  the  home  of 
Major  Andrew  Williamson,  twenty-eight  miles  away;  he 
found  that  officer  already  aroused  to  the  horrors  of  the 
situation  and  busily  endeavoring  to  collect  forces.  But  the 
settlers  were  terror  stricken,  several  hundred  had  been 
murdered  and  the  survivors  had  but  one  thought  and  that 
was  to  get  their  families  safely  into  the  nearest  forts.  He 
waited  two  days  and  only  forty  men  had  volunteered. 
With  this  small  band  Major  Williamson  with  Mr.  Salvador 
started  on  the  3rd  of  July  for  the  Indian  villages  resolved 
to  punish  them  severely.  But  when  the  settlers  had  pro- 
vided for  the  safety  of  their  wives  and  children,  many  of 
them  hurried  to  join  him  and  on  the  5th  there  were  110 
men  with  him,  on  the  8th  his  band  increased  to  222  and  on 
the  16th  they  numbered  450;  re-inf  or  cements  came  from 
Charlestown  and  also  from  Georgia  and  on  the  22nd  of 
July  he  was  at  the  head  of  1,150  men.  Meanwhile  he  had 
been  advancing  from  his  home  towards  the  Cherokee 
country  and  was  encamped  on  Baker's  creek,  a  few  miles 
above  Moffattsville.  Here  his  scouts  brought  him  the  news 


68  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

that  Alexander  Cameron,  thirteen  white  men  and  a  band 
of  Indians  were  camped  on  Oconore  Creek  about  thirty 
miles  away,  and  Williamson  determined  to  surprise  and 
capture  them  before  they  could  hear  of  his  proximity.  He 
therefore  selected  with  care  three  hundred  and  thirty  horse- 
men, the  brave  Mr.  Salvador  accompanying  him  and  started 
about  six  o'clock  on  the  evening  of  July  31st  planning  to 
surprise  the  enemy  before  day.  About  two  in  the  morning 
of  the  first  day  of  August  they  drew  near  the  town  of 
Essenecca  (or  Seneca) .  A  party  of  his  men  who  had  visited 
the  place  two  days  before  had  reported  to  him  that  the 
town  was  thoroughly  evacuated;  trusting  to  this  report  he 
carelessly  neglected  to  send  out  advance  scouts,  rode  into 
an  ambush  and  was  surprised  and  completely  routed  by  the 
Indians  at  this  town.  Quoting  Major  Williamson's  report 
of  the  event : 

"The  enemy  either  having  discovered  my  inarch  or  laid 
themselves  in  ambush  with  a  design  to  cut  off  my  spies  or  party  I 
had  sent  out,  had  taken  possession  of  the  first  houses  in  Seneca, 
and  posted  themselves  behind  a  long  fence  on  an  eminence  close 
to  the  road  where  we  were  to  march,  and  to  prevent  being  dis- 
covered had  filled  up  the  openings  between  the  rails,  with  corn 
blades,  etc.  They  suffered  the  guides  and  advance  guard  to  pass, 
when  a  gun  from  the  house  was  discharged  (meant  I  suppose  as  a 
signal  for  those  placed  behind  the  fence,  who  a  few  seconds  after- 
wards poured  in  a  heavy  fire  upon  my  men),  which  being  unex- 
pected, staggered  my  advance  party.  Here  Mr.  Salvador  received 
three  wounds  and  fell  by  my  side;  my  horse  was  shot  down  under 
me  but  I  received  no  hurt.  Lieut.  Farar  of  Capt.  Prince's  Com- 
pany immediately  supplied  me  with  his.  I  desired  him  to  take 
care  of  Mr.  Salvador,  but  before  he  could  find  him  in  the  dark, 
the  enemy  unfortunately  got  his  scalp  which  was  the  only  one 
taken.  Capt.  Smith,  son  of  the  late  Capt.  Aaron  Smith,  saw  the 
Indian,  but  thought  it  was  his  servant  taking  care  of  his  master 
or  could  have  prevented  it.  He  died  about  half-after  two  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  forty-five  minutes  after  he  received  the  wounds, 
sensible  to  the  last.  When  I  came  up  to  him  after  dislodging  the 
enemy,  and  speaking  to  him,  he  asked  whether  I  had  beat  the 
enemy,  I  told  him  yes,  he  said  he  was  glad  of  it,  and  shook  me 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  69 

by  the  hand,  and  bade  me  farewell  and  said  he  would  die  in  a 
few  minutes.  Two  men  died  in  the  morning,  and  six  more  who 
were  badly  wounded  I  have  since  sent  down  to  the  settlements 
and  given  directions  to  Dr.  DeLaTowe  and  Eussell  to  attend  them. 
I  remained  on  the  ground  till  daybreak  and  burnt  the  houses  on 
this  side  of  the  river  and  afterwards  crossed  the  river;  the  same 
day  reduced  Seneca  entirely  to  ashes." 

An  Extract  from  another  report  gives  further  particu- 
lars : 

"The  Indian  spies  had  observed  the  Major's  march  and 
alarmed  their  camp;  upon  which  about  thirty  Indians  and  as 
many  white  men  went  to  Seneca  and  placed  themselves  in  ambush. 
The  Indians  had  one  killed  and  three  wounded. 

"Seneca,  four  miles  long  on  each  side  of  the  river  with  six 
thousand  bushels  of  corn,  &c,  burned  August  1st. 

"Sugar  Town  and  Keowee,  Aug.  4th." 

The  account  given  by  McCrady  in  his  History  of  South 
Carolina  is  a  little  more  unfavorable  than  Major  William- 
son's: 

"Major  Williamson's  forces,  completely  surprised,  broke  away 
and  fled  in  the  greatest  confusion.  The  enemy  kept  up  a  constant 
fire  which  the  retreating  militia  returned  at  random,  as  dangerous 
to  their  friends  who  were  willing  to  advance  against  the  enemy 
as  it  was  to  the  enemy  themselves.  Fortunately  Lieutenant 
Colonel  Hammond  rallied  a  party  of  about  twenty  men,  and, 
making  an  unexpected  charge,  repulsed  the  savage  foe  and 
escaped.  The  Indians  lost  but  one  man  killed  and  three  wounded; 
of  Major  Williamson's  party  three  died  from  their  wounds  and 
fourteen  were  badly  injured.  When  daylight  arrived  he  burnt 
that  part  of  Esseneca  town  which  was  on  the  eastern  side  of  the 
Keowee  River,  and  later  Col.  Hammond  crossed  the  river  burnt, 
that  on  the  western  side  as  well  and  destroyed  all  the  provisions, 
computed  at  six  thousand  bushels  of  Indian  corn,  besides  peas 
and  other  articles.  The  object  of  overtaking  Cameron  and  his 
associates  having  been  thus  defeated  Williamson  retreated  and 
joined  his  camp  at  Twenty-three  Mile  Creek." 

The  loss  of  Mr.  Salvador  was  greatly  deplored  by  the 
province.  He  was  a  man  of  prominence,  intelligence  and 


70  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

worth  and  his  services  to  the  American  cause  would  have 
been  most  valuable.  An  interesting  sketch  of  his  life  may 
be  found  in  Elzas  "History  of  Jews  of  South  Carolina," 
written  by  Mr.  A.  S.  Salley. 

On  the  8th  of  August,  1776,  Williamson  marched  with 
640  men  upon  the  Indian  towns.  They  destroyed  Ostatoy, 
Tugaloo,  Tomassee,  Chehohee  and  Eustash ;  every  bit  of  the 
corn  was  burned  and  the  Indians  were  forced  to  live  upon 
roots  and  berries,  etc.  The  expedition  was  most  successful 
and  completely  retrieved  the  defeat  at  Seneca.  McCrady 
states  that  about  this  time  Major  Williamson  was  appointed 
colonel  of  the  Ninety-six  Regiment  and  upon  Colonel  Wil- 
liamson's return  to  his  camp  he  found  that  numbers  of  his 
men  had  gone  home,  forced  to  do  so  from  fatigue,  want  of 
clothes,  and  other  necessaries  and  that  many  who  had 
remained  were  in  equal  distress.  He  was  obliged  therefore 
to  grant  furloughs  ordering  them  to  rejoin  him  at  Esseneca 
on  the  28th  to  which  place  he  marched  on  the  16th  with 
about  six  hundred  men.  Here  he  erected  a  fort,  which  in 
honor  of  the  president  of  South  Carolina,  he  called  Fort 
Rutledge. 

Upon  the  breaking  out  of  this  war  application  had  been 
made  to  North  Carolina  and  Virginia  to  co-operate  with 
the  forces  of  South  Carolina  in  this  region.  Each  of  these 
states  complied  and  raised  a  body  of  troops.  The  first 
under  General  Rutherford,  to  act  in  conjunction  with  the 
South  Carolinians  on  this  side  the  mountains,  and  the  other 
under  Colonel  Christie,  to  act  against  the  over-hill  Chero- 
kees.  But  Colonel  Williamson  had  destroyed  all  the  lower 
settlements  before  the  North  Carolinians  under  General 
Rutherford  took  the  field. 

Colonel  Williamson  now  having  increased  his  force  to 
2,300  men,  broke  up  the  camp  at  Esseneca;  leaving  300 
men  as  a  guard  to  the  inhabitants  and  as  a  garrison  to 
Fort  Rutledge  he  marched  with  about  2,000  men  to  co- 
operate with  General  Rutherford. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  71 

History  tells  us  that  the  campaign  was  successful;  the 
Indians  received  lessons  they  never  forgot;  in  less  than 
three  months  the  Cherokees  lost  2,000  and  humbled  and 
broken  in  spirit;  they  sued  for  peace  on  any  terms.  A 
treaty  of  pacification  was  signed  and  the  Indians  yielded 
to  South  Carolina  a  large  tract  of  land  embracing  the 
counties  of  Anderson,  Pickens,  Oconee  and  Greenville. 

So  this  is  the  story  of  the  building  and  holding  of  Fort 
Rutledge.  The  remains  of  the  old  fort  are  well  worth 
preserving  for  its  foundations  were  laid  in  a  period  of 
storm  and  stress  and  suffering ;  its  rude  walls  frowned  upon 
the  Indians  early  in  the  Revolution;  its  watch  tower  kept 
guard  so  that  the  settler 's  family  in  his  humble  cabin  might 
rest  in  peace ;  with  its  little  garrison  of  three  hundred  men 
it  did  its  work  well  and  effectually  intimidated  the  enemies 
of  the  province  in  this  part  of  the  country. 

After  the  Revolutionary  war  it  was  abandoned  and 
gradually  fell  into  ruins  and  decay  but  the  name  "Fort 
Hill"  has  always  clung  to  it  and  the  site  never  has  been 
forgotten. — American  Monthly,  1907. 


72  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


THE     EFFORTS     OF     LAFAYETTE     FOR     THE 
CAUSE   OF   AMERICAN   INDEPENDENCE. 

BY  BESSIE  CAROLYN  McCLAiN. 
Gloversville  High  School,  Gloversville,  N.  Y. 

Probably  no  other  foreigner  accomplished  so  much  or 
sympathized  so  deeply  with  the  cause  of  American  Inde- 
pendence as  did  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette.  A  French 
nobleman  by  birth,  an  heir  to  an  immense  estate  at  thirteen, 
married  to  one  of  the  most  beautiful  ladies  of  the  French 
Court,  he  chose  a  life  of  privation  and  hardship,  to  one  of 
luxury  and  idleness.  The  love  of  liberty,  inherent  in  his 
soul,  made  him  a  champion  of  the  cause  which  seemed  the 
last  chance  for  liberty  to  obtain  a  foothold  upon  the  earth. 
From  the  time  the  situation  of  the  English  American 
colonies  was  made  known  in  France,  in  1776,  until  they 
became  a  free  and  independent  nation,  he  gave  himself, 
heart  and  soul,  to  their  cause.  He  served  them  both  by  his 
personal  qualities  and  by  his  active  efforts,  as  a  French 
nobleman,  and  as  an  American  soldier  and  general. 

The  qualities  by  which  Lafayette  most  aided  this 
country  in  its  great  conflict,  were  his  love  of  liberty, 
enthusiasm,  generosity  and  loyalty.  His  love  of  liberty 
first  made  him  interested  in  the  struggle  of  the  American 
Colonies  with  their  Mother  Country,  and  this  same  love  of 
liberty  kept  him  enthused  in  the  cause,  and  gave  him  the 
strength  and  courage  to  depart  from  his  home,  his  friends 
and  his  country.  Indeed  it  was  the  root  of  the  other 
qualities  by  which  he  did  us  service. 

When  once  his  enthusiasm  was  aroused,  nothing  could 
diminish  it.  When  he  heard  that  the  credit  of  the  "insur- 
gents" was  so  low  that  they  couldn't  possibly  provide  him 
a  ship,  he  said  in  that  case  they  needed  him  all  the  more, 
and  he  bought  one  with  his  own  money.  It  was  enthusiasm 
that  led  him  to  the  front  in  the  battle  of  Brandywine.  It 
was  enthusiasm  that  made  him  ride  seventy  miles  and  back, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  73 

for  the  French  fleet  when  it  was  needed  so  sorely.  Of 
course,  was  not  his  motto  ''cur  mm?" 

In  all  his  dealings  with  this  country,  he  showed  his 
generosity  and  disinterest.  What  was  it  if  not  generosity, 
when  at  his  own  expense,  he  fitted  out  the  ship  that  brought 
him  and  the  other  officers  to  this  country?  How  many 
times  during  the  war  did  he  clothe  his  soldiers  and  supply 
their  wants  when  the  country  couldn't?  He  proved  his 
disinterested  devotion  to  the  satisfaction  of  Congress,  when 
he  offered  to  serve  as  a  volunteer  without  pay  and  at  his 
own  expense.  Gladly  did  he  forego  the  comforts  and 
pleasures  to  which  education  and  rank  entitled  him,  and 
bear  with  the  soldiers  every  hardship  and  privation.  When, 
chiefly  through  his  influence,  France  agreed  to  send  aid  to 
America,  and  offered  him  a  commission,  he  refused  it  so 
as  not  to  arouse  jealousy  among  other  Frenchmen.  Was 
not  this  unselfish  love  of  liberty  of  the  plainest  type  ? 

His  most  striking  characteristic,  and  I  think  the  one  by 
which  he  did  us  the  most  service,  was  his  loyalty.  It 
strengthened  Washington  to  have  one  man  upon  whom  he 
could  rely  so  completely.  When  Gates  was  trying  to  stir 
up  trouble  against  him  and  had  appointed  Lafayette  to 
take  charge  of  an  invasion  into  Canada  over  which  he  had 
no  control,  he  urged  him  to  accept,  because  it  would  be 
safer  with  him  than  any  one  else.  Lafayette  did  accept 
and  he  carried  it  out  in  such  a  way  that  Gates'  scheme 
failed  completely.  At  the  Battle  of  Monmouth,  too,  when 
Washington  sent  Charles  Lee  to  command  over  him,  he 
showed  his  loyalty  to  Washington  by  submitting  quietly 
and  doing  all  he  could  to  bring  a  victory  out  of  a  defeat. 
But  what  counted  most,  perhaps,  was  the  faithfulness  with 
which  he  carried  out  every  order  no  matter  how  small  and 
unimportant. 

Lafayette  also  aided  this  country  by  his  active  efforts  as 
a  French  nobleman.  He  induced  France  and  Spain  to 
join  in  preparing  a  fleet  against  the  British,  and  it  was  not 
his  fault  that  Spain  kept  putting  it  off  until  too  late — he 


74  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

made  the  effort.  He  did  succeed  in  raising  the  popularity 
of  the  Colonies  in  France,  and  in  securing  six  thousand 
troops  under  Rochambeau,  a  fleet  under  d'Estaing  and 
supplies  for  our  soldiers.  After  the  French  forces  arrived, 
he  was  very  useful  in  keeping  harmony  between  the  armies, 
because  of  his  influence  over  his  own  countrymen  as  well  as 
Americans. 

Lafayette  was  one  of  the  most  faithful  soldiers  as  well  as 
one  of  the  best  generals,  this  country  had  during  the  Revo- 
lutionary War.  From  the  time  he  offered  himself  as  a 
volunteer,  until  the  war  was  over  he  served  the  country 
faithfully  and  well.  At  the  very  beginning  of  his  career 
in  this  country,  he  became  "Washington's  aide-de-camp,  and 
as  such  learned  a  great  deal  of  the  latter 's  methods  of  fight- 
ing. In  this  capacity  he  was  in  the  thick  of  the  battle  of 
Brandywine  and  did  much,  by  his  ready  daring  to  encour- 
age the  soldiers.  Before  a  wound,  which  he  received  in  this 
battle,  had  entirely  healed,  and  while  he  was  out  to  recon- 
noitre, he  came  unexpectedly  upon  a  large  body  of  Hes- 
sians. He  attacked  boldly,  and  they,  believing  they  were 
fighting  all  of  Greene's  men,  retreated.  Thus  he  was  ever 
ready  with  his  wit  and  daring. 

Throughout  the  long  dreary  months  when  the  army 
was  wintering  at  Valley  Forge,  Lafayette  suffered  with  the 
soldiers  and  helped  alleviate  the  misery  as  best  he  could. 
It  was  during  this  winter  that  Gates  and  Conway  made  the 
conspiracy  to  put  "Washington  out  of  power  and  to  put 
Gates  in  his  stead.  To  accomplish  this,  they  wished  to 
secure  Lafayette's  help,  so  they  contrived  to  put  him  at  the 
head  of  an  expedition  into  Canada,  with  Conway  second  in 
command.  Upon  Washington's  entreaty  he  accepted  the 
commission,  but  under  such  conditions  that  they  knew 
beforehand  that  their  scheme  was  a  failure.  When  he 
arrived  at  Albany,  he  saw  that  nothing  was  ready  for  an 
invasion  of  Canada,  and  that  the  affair  could  be  nothing 
but  a  disappointment  to  America  and  Europe,  and  a 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  75 

humiliation  to  himself,  nevertheless  he  made  the  most  of  his 
time  by  improving  the  forts  and  pacifying  the  Indians. 

When  the  British  left  Philadelphia,  "Washington 
wished  to  follow  and  force  a  battle,  and,  when  General  Lee 
laid  down  his  command,  put  Lafayette  in  charge.  Hardly 
had  the  latter  started,  when  Charles  Lee  asked  for  the  com- 
mand again.  Washington  could  not  recall  Lafayette,  yet  he 
wished  to  pacify  Lee,  so  he  trusted  to  Lafayette's  affection 
for  himself,  and  sent  Lee  ahead  with  two  extra  divisions, 
when,  as  senior  officer,  he  would  take  charge  of  the  whole. 
Lafayette  retired,  sensibly,  and  did  all  he  could  to  rally  the 
battle  that  Lee  was  conducting  so  poorly.  Finally  he  sent 
for  Washington — the  only  man  that  could  save  the  day. 

The  only  real  opportunity  Lafayette  had,  of  showing 
his  generalship,  was  in  the  southern  campaign  of  1781, 
when  he  was  placed  in  charge  of  a  thousand  light  infantry 
and  ordered  to  check  the  raids  of  the  British.  By  a  rapid 
march  he  forestalled  Philips,  who  was  threatening  valuable 
stores  at  Richmond,  and  harrassed  him  all  the  way  to  the 
Chickahominy  River.  Then,  while  he  was  separating  the 
stores,  Cornwallis,  joined  by  Philips,  took  a  stand  between 
him  and  Albermarle  where  he  had  placed  a  large  part  of 
the  stores.  While  Cornwallis  was  preparing  to  fight, 
Lafayette,  keeping  in  mind  the  admonition  of  Washington 
not  to  endanger  his  troops,  escaped  to  Albermarle  by  an 
unusued  road.  After  this  Cornwallis  gave  up  hopes  of 
trapping  "that  boy,"  as  he  called  Lafayette,  and  fortified 
himself  at  Yorktown. 

When  Lafayette  had  been  given  the  defense  of  Vir- 
ginia, his  soldiers,  hungry  and  destitute,  were  on  the  point 
of  desertion.  With  ready  tact  he  had  supplied,  from  his 
own  pocket,  the  direst  necessities,  and  then  had  given  them 
an  opportunity  of  going  north.  Of  course,  when  placed  on 
their  honor,  they  followed  him  with  good  will.  Having 
received  orders  from  Washington,  not  to  let  Cornwallis 
escape,  he  took  his  stand  on  Malvern  Hill,  a  good  strategic 
position,  to  await  the  coming  of  Washington  and  Rocham- 


76  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

beau.  When  the  siege  was  on  and  the  only  possible  escape 
for  Cornwallis  was  through  North  Carolina,  this,  Lafayette 
closed  and  his  light  infantry  also  captured  one  of  the 
redoubts  the  British  had  fixed.  The  Siege  of  Yorktown 
ended  his  services  for  the  independence  of  this  country; 
the  war  was  over  and  he  was  needed  no  more. 

The  results  of  Lafayette's  efforts  for  the  cause  of 
American  Independence  can  hardly  be  estimated.  They 
say  enthusiasm  is  contagious  and  it  seemed  so  in  his  case, 
for  his  very  enthusiasm  for  the  cause  won  others  to  it  and 
gave  it  greater  popularity  in  Europe  than  it  would  other- 
wise have  had.  In  this  country  he  improved  the  condition 
of  the  soldiers  by  his  ready  generosity,  and  raised  the 
spirit  of  the  army  by  his  own  example  of  disinterested 
patriotism.  He  gave  Washington  what  he  most  needed,  at 
that  time,  a  friend  whom  he  could  trust  implicitly,  and 
by  his  loyalty  did  his  share  towards  keeping  the  army 
undivided.  The  forces  he  secured  from  France  encouraged 
our  soldiers  and  the  supplies  did  a  good  deal  towards  satis- 
fying their  discontent.  By  inducing  France  to  acknowl- 
edge the  United  States  of  America,  he  did  us  one  of  the 
greatest  services  possible.  We  were  then  one  of  the  world 's 
nations,  and  our  credit  went  up  accordingly.  It  isn  't  likely 
that  the  results  of  his  efforts  as  an  American  soldier  and 
general,  can  ever  be  fully  ascertained.  He  did  so  many 
little  things  just  when  they  seemed  to  be  so  needed,  that  it 
is  impossible  to  sum  up  their  results.  All  we  can  say  is 
that  he  did  his  best  for  the  cause  of  American  Independ- 
ence.— Report  of  Sons  of  the  Revolution  1911-12. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  77 


JAMES  JACKSON. 

General  James  Jackson  was  born  in  Morton  Hampstead, 
in  the  beautiful  English  County  of  Devonshire.  His  father, 
James  Jackson,  died  when  he  was  a  boy  and  left  rather  a 
large  family.  He  heard  much  talk  of  the  American  Colonies 
and  had  a  great  desire  to  go  and  live  in  them.  His  mother 
and  grandfather  would  not  consent,  and  once  he  attempted 
to  sail,  hidden  in  the  hold  of  a  vessel,  but  was  brought  back. 
Seeing  his  determination  to  go,  sooner  or  later,  and 
influenced  by  John  Wereat,  a  leading  Whig,  the  family 
finally  consented.  Sailing  at  his  earliest  opportunity,  he 
landed  in  Georgia ;  and  at  the  age  of  fifteen  began  the  study 
of  law  in  the  office  of  an  eminent  lawyer  in  Savannah. 

In  1775,  in  the  beginning  of  Revolutionary  Days,  he  was 
one  of  the  first  lads  to  shoulder  a  musket  for  the  cause  of 
freedom.  He  distinguished  himself  in  several  skirmishes 
near  Savannah.  In  1776,  Colonel  Baker  conducted  an 
attack  upon  Tybee  Island,  where  some  of  the  enemy  from 
Vessels-of-War  were  living,  and  they  destroyed  the  build- 
ings, and  drove  the  enemy  to  their  ships.  In  this  attack, 
Jackson  distinguished  himself,  winning  therewith  honors 
from  the  governor,  and  the  thanks  and  admiration  of  the 
people. 

He  served  throughout  the  Revolutionary  War,  and 
when  Savannah  surrendered,  Gen  Anthony  Wayne,  ordered 
that  the  keys  of  Savannah  be  given  to  Jackson,  because  of 
his  gallant  service  to  his  state  and  country,  and  because  "he 
was  the  first  American  soldier  to  tread  the  soil  of  a  town, 
from  which  the  arms  of  a  tryant  had  too  long  kept  its 
lawful  possessor." 

At  the  close  of  the  Revolutionary  War,  James  Jackson 
began  the  practice  of  law  in  Savannah. 

Like  Joseph,  in  the  Bible  story,  he  remembered  and 
longed  for  his  youngest  brother ;  so  he  sent  a  request  to  his 
parents  that  his  brother  Henry  be  permitted  to  come  to 
America,  promising  to  educate  him  and  care  for  him  as  a 


78  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

son,  but  in  his  stead  the  family  sent  his  brother,  Abram. 
He  kept  his  brother  and  gave  him  advantages,  but  again 
sent  for  Henry.  The  latter  came  and  James  Jackson 
educated  him,  and  at  his  death  left  him  a  child's  share  of 
his  property.  This  Henry  was  for  years  professor  at  the 
Georgia  State  University,  and  was  interpreter  to  William 
H.  Crawford,  when  the  latter  was  minister  to  France.  His 
son  was  General  Henry  R.  Jackson,  of  Savannah,  who  was 
a  poet  and  a  distinguished  officer  in  both  the  Mexican  and 
Confederate  "Wars. 

General  James  Jackson  had  a  brother,  John,  who  was 
in  the  British  Navy  and  was  killed  during  the  Revolution- 
ary War. 

In  one  of  her  letters  to  James,  his  mother  wrote  how 
much  she  wished  she  could  see  him,  and  said:  "It  is  a 
great  and  a  deep  water  that  divides  us  and  when  I  think 
of  it  my  thoughts  turn  to  my  poor  John."  You  see  John 
had  been  buried  at  sea,  and  it  was  not  an  easy  matter  in 
those  days  for  James  to  visit  across  the  ocean,  when  it  took 
weeks  to  make  the  journey. 

General  Jackson  held  many  offices  and  was  one  of 
Georgia's  greatest  governors.  He  defeated  the  Yazoo 
Fraud,  resigning  his  place  in  the  National  Senate,  and 
going  from  there  to  the  Legislature  of  his  State  in  order 
to  do  it.  He  is  the  only  man  in  the  history  of  our 
country  who  ever  gave  up  being  a  Senator  to  go  to  the 
Legislature. 

It  has  been  said  that  if  Jackson's  heart  were  cut  out 
after  his  death,  on  it  would  have  been  found  the  beloved 
word,  "Georgia." 

He  died  in  Washington  years  after,  again  a  Senator, 
and  is  buried  in  the  Congressional  burial  ground.  His 
epitaph  was  written  by  his  friend  John  Randolph,  and  is 
as  follows: 

"In  the  memory  of  Major-General  James  Jackson  of  Georgia, 
who  deserved  and  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  a  grateful  country,' 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  79 

a  soldier  of  the  Revolution,  he  was  the  determined  foe  of  foreign 
tyranny,  the  scourge  and  terror  of  corruption  at  home." 

James  Jackson's  maternal  grandfather  never  forgave 
him  for  fighting  against  England  in  the  Revolutionary 
War,  and  in  his  will  left  to  his  grandson,  James,  only 
money  enough  to  buy  a  silver  cup. — CAROLINE  PATTERSON, 
Mary  Hammond  Washington  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


EXPERIENCES   OF  JOAB   HORNE. 

Compiled  by  one  of  his  descendants,  MRS.  B.  M.  DAVIDSON, 
Stone  Castle  Chapter  D.  A.  R.,  Dawson  Ga, 

Away  back  in  the  misty  past,  Isaac  Home,  of  Scotland, 
crossed  the  Atlantic  and  settled  in  Edgecomb  County, 
North  Carolina,  on  the  Tar  River.  Isaac  Home's  name 
figures  in  the  early  history  of  North  Carolina.  He  was  one 
of  the  first  commissioners  appointed  to  establish  the  boun- 
dary lines  between  the  counties  of  the  States.  He  was  a 
wealthy  planter,  but  the  greater  portion  of  his  property 
was  destroyed  by  the  Tories.  He  was  killed  at  "Gates 
defeat."  Isaac  Home  had  three  sons:  William,  Henry, 
Joab.  This  story  is  of  the  youngest  son,  Joab,  a  gallant 
Revolutionary  soldier  under  General  Francis  Marion. 

Joab  Home  met  and  wooed  an  English  girl,  Nancy 
Ricks.  They  encountered  parental  objections  to  their 
marriage  on  account  of  their  youth,  sixteen  and  fourteen, 
respectively,  but  love  won  and  so  the  union  was  consumated. 
Their  parents  never  forgave  them,  and  refused  to  aid  them 
in  any  way.  We  can  hardly  imagine  what  hardships  they 
endured;  but  with  his  beautiful  young  wife  to  encourage 
him  he  was  determined  to  surmount  all  difficulties.  Hear- 
ing of  the  rich  lands  of  Georgia,  they  decided  to  emigrate. 
Joab  had  one  mule,  and  he  procured  a  "hogshead"  through 
which  he  ran  a  piece  of  scantling  to  serve  as  an  axle,  to 
this  axle  shafts  were  attached;  his  mule  was  hitched  to 
this  wonderful  contrivance,  their  clothes  put  inside  the 
rolling  hogshead,  and  thus  the  journey  to  Georgia  was 
begun. 


80  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

God  had  blessed  their  union  with  the  gift  of  a  little 
child,  but  the  exposure  resulting  from  this  mode  of  travel 
was  more  than  the  little  one  could  with-stand.  A  little 
grave  by  the  road  side  marked  the  first  mile  stone  of  real 
sorrow  in  their  lives.  Finally,  they  reached  their  destina- 
tion in  Burke  County,  Georgia,  on  the  Ogeechee  River,  and 
began  their  new  life  in  a  new  country.  This  country  was 
almost  a  wilderness  at  that  time.  The  first  preparation  for 
a  home  was  a  bush  arbor,  with  a  real  Georgia  bed-stead,  and 
fresh  straw  for  a  mattress ;  but  it  was  not  long  before  they 
had  as  comfortable  a  home  as  could  be  found  in  those  days. 

Trading  seemed  to  be  one  of  Joab 's  characteristics.  He 
had  two  hats,  a  "Sunday"  and  an  "every  day  hat,"  the 
Sunday  hat  he  traded  for  a  wash-pot.  Nancy,  his  wife, 
would  trade  her  jewelry,  which  she  had  brought  from  her 
girl-hood  home,  for  household  necessities.  Six  children 
blessed  their  union,  four  girls  and  two  boys.  Later  they 
moved  to  Pulaski  County,  near  Hawkinsville,  Ga.  The 
evening  of  their  life  was  spent  in  prosperity,  a  sure  reward 
for  such  endurance,  labor  and  love. 

Nancy  (Ricks)  Home  died  at  the  age  of  sixty- three,  on 
their  plantation  in  Pulaski  County. 

Joab  moved,  with  his  son  Eli,  who  married  Sarah  Ander- 
son of  Hawkinsville,  to  west  Florida,  on  the  Yellow  River ; 
there  he  lived  to  the  ripe  old  age  of  eighty-seven.  Many  a 
night  would  he  sit  by  the  fire-side  and  entertain  his  chil- 
dren and  friends  by  relating  experiences  of  other  days. 
He  could  truly  say,  with  Columbus:  "For  the  years  will 
give  back  what  the  years  with-held,  and  the  balance  swing 
level  in  the  end. ' ' 

Joab  Home  is  buried  in  Stewart  cemetery,  on  Yellow 
River,  west  Florida.  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  epitaph 
on  his  tomb : 

"In  Memory  of  Joab  Home 

Member  of  the  Revolution 

Born  Dec.  30—1753 

Died  July  28—1840." 

"Blow,  gentle  gale,  and  bear  my  soul  away  to  Canaan's  Land." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  81 


HISTORICAL  SKETCH  OF  MARGARET  KATHER- 

INE  BARRY,  KNOWN  AS  "KATE  BARRY, 

HEROINE  OF  THE  COWPENS." 

Kate  Barry,  an  important  character  during  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  was  noted  as  a  scout,  and  once  during  her 
husband's  absence  was  flogged  by  the  Tories  to  make  her 
disclose  the  whereabouts  of  her  husband,  and  his  company 
of  Rangers.  Her  husband,  Captain  Andrew  Barry,  was  a 
magistrate  under  King  George  III,  and  continued  to  exer- 
cise that  office  till  the  Revolution  began.  He  was  also  a 
Captain  in  Colonial  period,  but  at  the  beginning  of  the  War 
for  Independence,  1776,  was  recommissioned  Captain  of 
South  Carolina  Rangers  by  Governor  Rutledge,  and  was  a 
daring  and  brilliant  officer  during  the  whole  war. 

He  was  at  Musgroves'  Mill,  Cowpens,  Cedar  Springs, 
and  many  other  engagements,  and  was  severely  wounded 
during  the  battle  of  Musgroves'  Mill,  18th  August,  1780, 
but  with  the  tender  care  of  his  wife  Kate  Barry,  who  was 
always  close  by  for  scout  duty,  he  was  soon  restored  to 
health. 

Captain  Andrew  Barry  was  also  a  religious  man,  and 
was  one  of  the  first  elders  elected  by  Nazareth  Presbyterian 
Church  in  Spantanburg  County,  S.  C.,  in  which  capacity 
he  served  the  church  'till  his  death,  June  17th,  1811.  His 
name  appears  in  the  book,  "Heitman's  Historical  Register 
of  the  Officers  of  the  Continental  Army." 

The  Richard  Barry  who  signed  the  Mecklenburg  Decla- 
ration of  Independence  was  of  this  family. 

It  is  written  of  Kate  Barry  that  she  knew  no  fear,  and 
where  duty  pointed  she  dared  to  go,  and  where  her  love  and 
affections  centered,  she  would  risk  any  and  all  dangers  to 
guard  and  protect  those  whom  she  loved.  Kate  Barry  was 
as  remarkable  for  piety  as  for  patriotism,  she  came  of  a 
religious  family,  and  not  only  are  there  stories  of  deeds  of 
kindness  and  sympathy,  well  authenticated,  handed  down 
in  family  traditions,  but  her  sister,  Rosa  Moore,  wife  of 


82 


Richard  Barry,  was  also  noted  as  a  ministering  angel  at  the 
beside  of  the  dying ;  and  her  prayers  in  hours  of  trial  and 
bereavement  made  indelible  impressions. 

During  the  "War  of  the  Revolution  Kate  Barry  acted  as 
a  voluntary  scout  for  the  patriot  Whigs  of  South  Carolina, 
and  was  so  efficient  that  the  patriot  bands  were  seldom  sur- 
prised by  the  British.  She  was  the  idol  of  her  husband's 
company  of  Rangers,  any  one  of  whom  would  have 
risked  his  own  life  to  save  hers. 

After  the  war  ended  Major  Crawford  approached  Cap- 
tain Andrew  Barry,  and  said:  "It  is  your  duty  to  kill 
Elliott,  the  Tory  who  struck  Kate  Barry  one  cut  with  a 
whip  to  intimidate  her  and  make  her  disclose  where  the 
patriots  were  encamped;  but  if  you  will  not,  then  I  will 
kill  him,  for  no  man  shall  live  who  struck  Kate  Barry." 
Then  eleven  men,  including  Captain  Barry  and  Major 
Crawford,  went  out  in  search  of  Elliott,  whom  they  found 
at  a  neighborhood  gathering.  So  soon  as  they  were  seen 
approaching,  Elliott  fled  into  the  house,  and  sought  con- 
cealment under  a  bed.  The  doors  were  closed,  and  after 
parleying  with  Captain  Barry,  and  his  friends,  Elliott's 
friends  agreed  that  Captain  Barry  alone,  but  unarmed, 
might  enter  the  house,  and  see  Elliott,  with  the  promise 
that  Barry  would  not  kill  him,  which  he  might  easily  have 
done,  as  Barry  is  described  by  Dr.  Howe  in  his  "History 
of  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  South  Carolina,"  as  a 
handsome  man,  six  feet  and  one  inch  in  height  and  of 
powerful  muscular  strength.  Barry  entered  the  house,  and 
the  doors  were  again  closed,  and  Elliott  came  out  from 
under  the  bed,  when  Captain  Barry  at  once  seized  a  three- 
legged  stool,  with  which  he  struck  Elliott  to  the  floor,  ex- 
claiming :  ' '  I  am  now  satisfied,  I  will  not  take  his  life. ' ' 

"When  General  Greene,  after  Gates'  defeat  at  Camden, 
was  placed  in  command  of  the  Army  of  the  Southern 
Department,  he  sent  General  Morgan  into  South  Carolina 
to  assemble  the  scattered  patriots,  preparatory  to  reclaim- 
ing South  Carolina,  which  after  Gates'  defeat,  and  Buford's 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  83 

annihilation  at  the  Waxhaws,  lay  bleeding  at  the  feet  of 
the  British  Lion.  It  was  then  that  Kate  Barry  in  her 
voluntary  capacity  as  scout  for  General  Morgan,  of  whose 
command  her  husband's  company  of  Rangers  was  a  part, 
hunted  up  patriot  bands  and  hurried  them  forward  to 
Morgan.  In  a  short  time  General  Morgan  found  himself 
with  sufficient  force  added  to  his  little  army  of  four  hun- 
dred regulars  to  give  battle  to  Tarleton  at  the  Cowpens. 
To  hurry  up  the  South  Carolina  Rangers  she  swam  her 
horse  across  rivers,  evaded  the  Tories,  and  encountered  a 
thousand  dangers,  but  succeeded  in  recruiting  Morgan's 
little  army  with  sufficient  patriotic  force  to  bring  off  the 
best  fought  battle  of  the  Revolution,  and  at  a  time  when 
all  seemed  lost  to  the  patriot  cause,  and  so  followed 
Carolina's  redemption. 

Who  knows  but  Kate  Barry's  prayers  were  answered 
when  Broad  River  so  suddenly  rose  from  a  descending 
freshet,  and  cut  off  Cornwallis'  pursuing  army  after  the 
Battle  of  the  Cowpens.  The  same  downflowing  freshet 
happened  at  Yadkin,  Morgan  making  good  his  retreat  to 
Grane  near  Guilford  Court  House. 

Kate  Barry  was  a  daughter  of  Col.  Charles  Moore,  who 
was  born  in  Scotland  in  1727,  and  who  went  into  Ireland 
from  Scotland  with  the  Duke  of  Hamilton,  his  relative,  as 
family  tradition  says  Col.  Charles  Moore's  mother  was  a 
Hamilton. 

Charles  Moore  was  a  college  graduate,  and  a  prominent 
teacher  at  the  time  he  removed  to  Carolina,  and  is  described 
as  such  in  a  deed  for  land  now  on  file  of  record  in  North 
Carolina,  but  what  important  part  he  took  in  the  War  of 
the  Revolution  is  not  positively  known;  further  than  that 
his  son,  Captain  Thomas  Moore,  distinguished  himself  at 
Cowpens,  and  was  afterwards  a  General  in  the  War  of  1812. 
But  Col.  Charles  Moore's  six  sons-in-law  all  acted  promin- 
ent parts  on  the  side  of  the  patriots  in  the  War  of  the  Revo- 
lution, viz:  Captain  Andrew  Barry,  husband  of  Margaret 
Katherine  Moore;  Col.  Jno.  Lawson,  husband  of  Alice 


84  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Moore;  Judge  Richard  Barry,  husband  of  Rosa  Moore; 
Rev.  R.  M.  Cunningham,  D.  D.,  husband  of  Elizabeth 

Moore ;  Capt.  Robt.  Hanna,  'husband  of Moore.    He 

was  on  the  staff  of  General  Sumter  at  the  Battle  of  Black- 
stock  ;  Matthew  Patton,  husband  of  the  two  last  sisters  was 
a  noted  soldier,  but  his  rank  is  not  known,  except  that  he 
was  a  staff  officer. 

Written  by  Mary  S.  Irwin  Wood  (Mrs.  James  S.  Wood) 
Regent  of  Savannah  Chapter,  a  descendent  of  Captain  Andrew 
Barr  yand  Kate  Barry — from  records  and  authenticated  family 
traditions,  and  read  at  June  meeting  of  the  Savannah  Chapter 
D.  A.  R.  1913,  by  her  daughter  Miss  Rosalind  Lawson  Wood,  by 
request  sent  to  Elijah  Clark  Chapter  D.  A.  R.,  Athens,  G-a.,  to 
be  read  by  Mrs.  Augusta  Wood  DuBose,  adso  a  descendant  of 
Kate  Barry  and  her  husband,  Captain  Andrew  Barry. 


ART  AND  ARTISTS  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

During  the  reign  of  George  III,  in  the  town  of  Boston, 
with  only  eighteen  thousand  inhabitants,  there  hung  in  the 
library  of  Harvard  University  a  copy  of  "A  Cardinal" 
by  Van  Dycke.  The  New  England  states  were  opposed  to 
art  as  a  principle,  but  showed  signs  of  literary  and  artistic 
activity  at  this  time.  Exhibitions  were  unknown,  the 
painters  were  "traveling  artists"  who  went  over  the 
country  painting  portraits  on  sign  boards,  stage  coaches, 
and  fire  engines,  for  practice  and  also  a  living.  John 
Singleton  Copeley,  in  Boston,  was  the  only  American  artist 
who  did  meritorious  work.  Before  he  came  under  foreign 
influences,  he  wielded  his  brush  with  great  dexterity,  ' '  The 
Death  of  the  Earl  of  Chatham"  in  the  National  Gallery  in 
London,  being  one  of  his  famous  pictures.  The  grouping 
of  the  portrait  figures  is  skillfully  arranged.  To  our  art, 
the  portraits  he  painted  in  Boston  are  of  importance.  The 
lesson  thus  taught  led  us  into  the  interior  of  the  royalist 
era,  with  carved  furniture,  showy  curtains,  peopled  with 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  85 

well-to-do  men  and  women,  lavishly  robed,  that  suggests  the 
customs  as  well  as  the  people  of  the  Revolutionary  period, 
Benjamin  West,  a  contemporary  of  Copely,  had  nothing  in 
common  with  the  development  of  American  art.  He  left 
at  an  early  age  for  England,  where  he  climbed  the  pinnacle 
of  social,  if  not  artistic  success.  He  was  a  personal  friend 
of  the  king,  was  employed  as  his  historical  painter,  succeed- 
ing 'Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  as  president  of  the  royal  academy. 
One  of  his  pictures  quite  noted  was  "Christ  Rejected." 
' '  Death  on  the  Pale  Horse, ' '  the  size  of  the  canvas  he  used 
was  200  by  264  feet.  His  daring  innovation  of  dressing  the 
characters  showed  the  costumes  of  the  time  and  country  in 
which  they  lived.  It  was  his  picturesque  personality  more 
than  his  art  that  attracts  us  to-day.  In  his  native  town., 
Philadelphia,  it  is  said  the  Cherokee  Indians  taught  him  the 
secret  of  preparing  color.  This  was  the  first  city  in  the 
Union  where  opportunities  for  art  growth  and  a  moderate 
patronage  presented  themselves.  Charles  Wilson  Peale,  a 
man  rather  versatile,  also  a  painter  of  some  merit,  estab- 
lished the  first  "Art  Gallery,"  a  museum  of  historical 
portraits,  in  his  residence  in  Philadelphia. 

John  Trumbull  was  a  different  type,  was  not  so  richly 
endowed  by  natural  gifts.  Every  accomplishment  meant 
strenuous  study,  yet  he  is  dear  to  us  for  his  glorification  of 
revolutionary  history.  ' '  The  Battle  of  Bunker  Hill, "  "  The 
Death  of  Montgomery ' '  and  ' '  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence,"  are  familiar.  The  growth  of  art  was  handicapped, 
more  than  benefited — America  was  now  an  independent 
nation.  The  Royalists  who  could  afford  the  luxury  of  art 
left  this  country.  Now  three  men  stepped  forth  who  bore 
upon  their  brush  tips  the  honor  and  progress  of  American 
art,  Thomas  Sully,  John  Vanderlyn  and  Washington  Alls- 
ton.  The  first  mentioned  became  rapidly  the  most  fashion- 
able portrait  painter  of  the  day.  His  sweet  faces,  with 
robes  draped  gracefully,  show  great  progress  and  execu- 
tion. Sully  was  represented  at  the  Philadelphia  Academy 


86  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

by  one  hundred  and  sixteen  pictures.    It  is  said  he  painted 
a  full  length  portrait  of  Queen  Victoria. 

Vanderlyn  lived  in  Rome  painting.  Washington 
Allston  painted  on  his  enormous  canvas  "Belchazzer's 
Feast."  "The  Angel  Liberating  St.  Peter  from  Prison "- 
is  one  of  decided  merit.  Gilbert  Stuart  was  not  a  follower 
of  the  others,  had  a  distinct  and  forceful  individuality,  the 
striking  details  of  his  work  being  brilliance  in  coloring  and 
the  natural  life-like  posing.  He  was  the  first  American 
master  of  painting.  His  early  sketches  were  lost.  At  the 
age  of  thirteen  he  received  commission  to  paint  two  por- 
traits. Two  years  later  he  went  to  Scotland.  His  stay 
there  was  short,  he  pined  for  home,  secured  passage  and 
returned,  later  going  to  London  in  1775,  suffering  privation. 
Afterwards  a  pupil  under  West  for  five  years,  his  success 
was  immediate;  people  of  wit  and  fashion  thronged  his 
studio.  He  tasked  himself  to  six  sitters  a  day.  Then  devot- 
ed himself  to  society,  living  in  great  splendor.  During 
this  period  he  painted  Louis  the  Sixteenth,  George  III,  and 
Prince  of  Wales.  Now  his  position  was  assured,  he  indulged 
himself  in  refusing  many  sitters,  money  failed  to  tempt 
him,  only  those  who  appealed  to  his  artistic  taste  or  afforded 
the  best  opportunity  for  a  good  picture.  He  was  willing 
to  give  up  all  the  golden  opportunities  Europe  presented 
that  he  might  have  the  privilege  and  satisfaction  of  paint- 
ing the  one  man,  whose  heroic  qualities  fascinated  him  most. 
In  1792  he  returned  to  the  City  of  Brotherly  Love,  estab- 
lishing his  studio  here,  painted  three  portraits  of  Wash- 
ington, unlike  Peale,  who  made  in  all  fourteen  of  Wash- 
ington from  life,  painting  him  in  the  prime  of  his  vigour. 
Stuart  depicts  the  late  autumn  of  his  life,  a  face  in  which 
the  lines  of  character  are  softened,  a  face  chastened  by 
responsibilities,  it  is  the  face,  who  has  conquered  himself 
as  well  as  others ;  he  represents  him  indeed  as  ' '  The  Father 
of  His  Country."  He  said,  "I  copy  the  works  of  God, 
leave  clothes  to  the  tailor,  and  mantua  maker. ' ' 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  87 

In  Washington  he  found  sentiments,  grace  and  charac- 
ter. In  the  story  of  art,  Gilbert  Stuart  holds  a  unique,  and 
dignified  position.  "The  Course  of  Nature  is  but  the  Art 
of  God."  Thomas  Cole  was  a  landscape  painter.  The 
sketches  he  painted  in  the  Catskills — the  banks,  woods, 
rocks  and  the  Cascades — gained  recognition.  He  was  an 
ardent  student  of  English  literature,  influenced  by  Sir 
Walter  Scott.  In  truth,  was  more  of  a  poet  than  painter. 
His  noted  pictures  were  ' '  The  Voyage  of  Childhood, "  ' '  The 
Course  of  Empire,"  consisting  of  five  canvasses,  first  rep- 
resenting "A  Nation's  Rise,  Progress,  Decline  and  Fall." 
These  are  at  the  Historical  Society  of  New  York.  The  last 
picture  of  the  serial,  entitled  ' '  Desolation, ' '  has  rarely  been 
surpassed  in  solemn  majesty,  and  depth  of  thought. — 
Miss  Emily  G.  Morrow,  American  Monthly  Magazine. 


"UNCLE  SAM"   EXPLAINED   AGAIN. 

Troy,  New  York,  is  said  to  be  the  place  where  the  name 
"Uncle  Sam"  originated.  After  the  declaration  of  war 
with  England  by  the  colonies  a  New  York  contractor,  Elbert 
Anderson,  visited  Troy  and  made  it  his  headquarters  for 
the  purchase  of  provisions  for  the  Continental  army.  The 
supplies  were  duly  inspected  before  shipment.  One  of  the 
inspectors  was  Samuel  Wilson,  brother  of  Ebenezer,  also  an 
inspector  and  known  as  Uncle  Sam  to  the  workmen  whom 
he  superintended. 

The  casks  in  which  the  beef  and  pork  were  packed  were 
marked  with  the  initials  of  Elbert  Anderson,  the  contractor, 
and  the  United  States,  thus:  "E.  A. — U.  S."  says  the  New 
York  Sun.  The  first  pair  of  initials  were  of  course  familiar 
to  the  men,  but  "U.  S."  mystified  them.  The  fact  was  that 
the  name  United  States  was  then  so  new  to  these  country- 
men that  its  initials  were  a  complete  puzzle.  They  turned 
to  the  nearest  explanation,  a  humorous  one  and  intended  as 
a  joke  on  their  boss.  If  ' '  E.  A. "  stood  for  Elbert  Anderson, 


88  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

then  they  opined  "U.  S."  must  stand  for  " Uncle  Sam" 
Wilson.  The  joke  spread  to  the  Continental  army,  which 
carried  it  to  every  part  of  the  country. 


AN  EPISODE  OF  THE  WAR  OF  THE 
REVOLUTION. 

In  1781  South  Carolina  was  completely  overrun  by  the 
British.  The  English  colonists  were  divided,  the  majority 
being  in  favor  of  the  Revolution,  but  there  were  a  goodly 
number  of  loyal  men  among  them  who  conscientiously 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  Mother  country  and  these  were 
called  Tories.  Those  who  took  part  in  the  Revolution  were 
called  Whigs.  Lancaster  County  was  their  stronghold. 
They  were  mostly  descendants  of  the  Scotch-Irish.  Among 
these  was  Charles  Mackey,  their  acknowledged  leader. 

The  Whigs  had  always  made  Lancaster  too  hot  for  the 
Tories,  but  the  advent  of  the  British  with  Tarleton  at  their 
head,  turned  the  tide  of  war,  and  now  the  Tories  with 
Tarleton  drove  the  Whigs  from  Lancaster  across  the 
Catawba  and  the  Pedee  Rivers  to  join  General  Marion. 

Charles  Mackey,  as  the  leader  of  his  band,  had  made 
himself  very  obnoxious  to  the  Tories  and  they  impatiently 
waited  the  time  for  vengeance.  He  was  a  man  of  medium 
size,  very  active  and  energetic,  a  fine  horseman,  a  splendid 
shot,  hot  headed,  impulsive,  often  running  unnecessary 
risks  and  doing  dare-devil  deeds.  No  work  was  too  hazard- 
ous for  him.  His  wife,  Lydia  Mackey,  was  a  woman  of 
good  common  sense,  with  a  clear  head  and  fine  judgment. 
In  her  coolness  and  self-possession  she  was  far  superior  to 
her  husband. 

They  had  a  family  of  young  children,  and  Charles 
Mackey  had  not  heard  from  them  or  seen  any  of  them  in 
several  weeks.  Their  home  was  not  more  than  two  and  a 
half  miles  from  Tarleton 's  camp,  on  the  Hanging,  Rock 
Creek.  He  knew  it  would  be  hazardous  for  him  to  return 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  89 

to  his  home  so  near  Tarleston  's  camp ;  but  his  auxiety  be- 
came so  great  that  he  could  no  longer  remain  in  doubt,  so 
he  cautiously  made  his  way  home  where  he  jiinwisely 
loitered  for  a  week,  and  during  this  time  he  had  the 
temerity  to  enter  Tarleton  's  lines  more  than  once  in  search 
of  information  which  was  most  valuable  to  his  country's 
defenders. 

His  home  had  patches  of  corn  and  potatoes  on  either  side 
of  a  lane  leading  to  the  front  of  the  house,  while  at  the  rear 
was  a  large  kitchen-garden  extending  back  to  a  great 
swamp,  which  was  almost  impenetrable  to  man  or  beast. 
This  swamp  was  surrounded  by  a  quagmire  from  ten  to 
thirty  feet  wide.  It  was  entered  by  jumping  from  tussock 
to  tussock  of  moss  covered  clumps  of  mold,  a  foot  or  two  in 
diameter  and  rising  six  to  eight  inches  above  the  black 
jelly-like  mire  which  shook  in  every  direction  when  passing 
over  it.  A  plank  or  fence-rail  served  as  a  temporary  draw- 
bridge, which  was  pulled  into  the  swamp  after  passing 
over. 

When  the  country  was  infested  by  Tories,  Charles 
Mackey  spent  his  days  in  this  swamp  if  not  out  scouting. 
At  night  he  ventured  home.  He  had  good  watch  dogs  and 
they  gave  the  alarm  whenever  any  one  approached,  whether 
by  night  or  day.  If  at  night,  he  would  immediately  lift  a 
loose  plank  in  the  floor  of  his  bed  room,  drop  through  to 
the  ground,  and  out  in  the  rear  and  run  thirty  or  forty 
yards  across  the  garden  with  his  gun  in  hand  and  disappear 
in  the  swamp,  pulling  his  fence  rail  draw-bridge  after  him. 
There  was  no  approach  to  the  house  from  the  rear,  and  his 
retreat  was  always  effected  with  impunity. 

Once  when  he  was  at  home,  on  the  eve  of  leaving  with 
some  valuable  information  for  the  American  General,  his 
faithful  watch  dog  failed  to  give  warning  of  the  approach 
of  strangers  and  the  first  notice  of  their  presence  was  their 
shouting  "Hallo"  in  front  of  the  house.  Mrs.  Mackey 
jumped  out  of  bed,  threw  open  the  window  shutters,  stuck 
her  head  out,  surveyed  carefully  tbe  half  dozen  armed  men, 


90  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

and  said :  ' '  Who  is  there ! "  ' '  Friends, ' '  they  replied.  ' '  Is 
Charlie  Mackey  at  home  ? ' '  She  promptly  answered  ' '  No. ' ' 
In  the  mean  time  Charlie  had  raised  the  loose  plank  in  the 
floor,  and  was  ready  to  make  for  the  swamp  in  the  rear, 
when,  stopping  for  a  moment  to  make  sure  of  the  character 
of  his  visitors,  he  heard  the  spokesman  say:  "Well,  we  are 
sorry  indeed,  for  there  was  a  big  fight  yesterday  on  Lynch 's 
Creek,  between  General  Marion  and  the  British,  and  we 
routed  the  Redcoats  completely.  We  have  been  sent  to 
General  Davie  at  Lansford  with  orders  to  unite  with 
General  Marion  at  Flat  Rock  as  soon  as  possible,  and  then 
to  attack  Tarleton.  We  do  not  know  the  way  to  Lansford 
and  came  to  get  Charlie  to  pilot  us."  Mrs.  Mackey,  calm 
and  collected,  said  she  was  sorry  her  husband  was  not  at 
home.  But  her  husband  was  just  the  reverse,  hot  headed 
and  impetuous.  This  sudden  news  of  victory  after  so  many 
reverses  excited  him,  and  he  madly  rushed  out  into  the 
midst  of  the  mounted  men,  hurrahing  for  Marion  and 
Davie,  and  shouting  vengeance  on  the  Redcoats  and  Tories, 
and  he  began  shaking  hands  enthusiastically  with  the  boys 
and  asking  particulars  about  the  fight,  when  the  ring- 
leader cooly  said:  "Well,  Charlie,  old  fellow,  we  have  set 
many  traps  for  you,  but  never  baited  them  right  until  now. 
You  are  our  prisoner."  And  they  marched  him  off  just 
as  he  was,  without  hat  or  coat  and  without  allowing  him 
a  moment  to  say  a  parting  word  to  his  poor  wife.  They 
took  him  to  Col.  Tarleton 's  headquarters  where  he  was  tried 
by  court-martial  and  sentenced  to  death  as  a  spy. 

The  next  day,  Mrs.  Mackey,  not  knowing  what  had 
happened  to  him,  gathered  some  fruits  and  eggs,  and  with  a 
basket  well  filled  made  her  way  to  Col.  Tarleton 's.  The 
Colonel  was  on  parade,  but  a  young  officer  asked  her  to  be 
seated.  He  said:  "You  have  something  for  sale,  I  pre- 
sume?" She  replied  that  she  had  fruit  and  eggs.  He 
gladly  took  what  she  had  and  paid  for  them.  She  then 
said  her  basket  of  fruit  was  only  a  pretext  to  get  to  Col. 
Tarleton 's  headquarters.  That  she  was  anxious  to  see  him 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  91 

in  person  on  business  of  great  importance.  She  then 
explained  to  him  the  capture  of  her  husband  and  that  she 
wished  to  get  him  released  if  he  were  still  alive,  though  she 
did  not  know  but  what  they  had  hung  him  to  the  first  tree 
they  had  come  to. 

The  officer  told  her  the  Colonel  was  on  parade  and  would 
not  return  for  two  hours.  Mrs.  Mackey  was  a  comely 
woman  of  superior  intelligence  and  soon  interested  the 
young  officer  in  her  sad  condition.  He  expressed  for  her 
the  deepest  sympathy  and  told  her  that  her  husband  was 
near  by  under  guard ;  that  he  had  been  tried  and  sentenced 
to  death,  and  he  feared  there  was  no  hope  for  him,  as  the 
evidence  against  him  by  the  Tories  was  of  the  most  positive 
kind.  He  told  her  Col.  Tarleton  was  as  cruel  and  unfeel- 
ing as  he  was  brave,  and  that  he  would  promise  her  any- 
thing to  get  rid  of  her,  but  would  fulfill  nothing.  "  How- 
ever" said  he,  "I  will  prepare  the  necessary  document  for 
your  husband's  release,  filling  in  the  blanks  so  that  it  will 
only  be  necessary  to  get  Col.  Tarleton 's  signature,  but  I 
again  frankly  say  that  it  is  almost  hopeless. ' ' 

At  twelve  o'clock  Tarleton  rode  up,  dismounted,  and 
entered  the  adjoining  tent.  As  he  passed  along  the  young 
officer  said,  "You  must  wait  until  he  dines;  another  horse 
will  be  brought  and  when  he  comes  up  to  mount  you  can 
approach  him,  but  not  till  then. ' ' 

At  the  expected  time  the  tall,  handsome,  clean-shaven 
Colonel  came  out  of  his  tent,  and  as  he  neared  his  charger, 
he  was  confronted  by  the  heroic  Lydia  Mackey,  who  in  a 
few  words  made  known  the  object  of  her  visit.  He  quickly 
replied  that  he  was  in  a  hurry  and  could  not  at  that  time 
stop  to  consider  her  case.  She  said  the  case  was  urgent; 
that  her  husband  had  been  condemned  to  death  and  he 
alone  had  the  power  to  save  him.  He  replied :  ' '  Very  well, 
my  good  woman,  when  I  return  later  in  the  day  I  will 
inquire  into  the  matter. ' '  Saying  this  he  placed  his  foot  in 
the  stirrup  and  sprang  up,  but  before  he  could  throw  his 
right  leg  over  the  saddle,  Mrs.  Mackey  caught  him  by  the 


92  EEVOLUTIONARY  EEADER 

coat  and  jerked  him  down.  He  turned  upon  her  with  a 
scowl,  as  she  implored  him  to  grant  her  request.  He  was 
greatly  discomfited  and  angrily  said  he  woudd  inquire  into 
the  case  on  his  return.  He  then  attempted  again  to  mount, 
when  she  dragged  him  down  the  second  time,  begging  him 
in  eloquent  terms  to  spare  the  life  of  her  husband.  "Tut, 
tut,  my  good  woman,"  said  he,  boiling  with  rage,  "do  you 
know  what  you  are  doing?  be  gone,  I  say  I  will  attend  to 
this  matter  at  my  convenience  and  not  sooner. ' '  So  saying 
he  attempted  the  third  time  to  mount,  and  so  the  third  time 
Lydia  Mackey  jerked  him  to  the  ground.  Holding  by  the 
sword's  scabbard,  and  falling  on  her  knees,  she  cried: 
"Draw  your  sword  and  slay  me,  or  give  me  the  life  of  my 
husband,  for  I  will  never  let  you  go  until  you  kill  me  or 
sign  this  document,"  which  she  drew  from  her  bosom  and 
held  up  before  his  face. 

Tarleton,  trembling  with  rage,  turned  to  the  young 
officer  who  stood  close  by  intently  watching  the  scene,  and 
said:  "Captain,  where  is  this  woman's  husband?"  He 
answered:  "Under  guard  in  yonder  tent."  "Order  him 
to  be  brought  here, ' '  and  soon  Charlie  Mackey  stood  before 
the  valiant  Tarleton.  "Sir"  said  he,  "you  have  been  con- 
victed of  bearing  arms  against  His  Majesty's  government; 
worse,  you  have  been  convicted  of  being  a  spy.  You  have 
dared  to  enter  my  lines  in  disguise  as  a  spy,  and  you  cannot 
deny  it,  but  for  the  sake  of  your  wife  I  will  give  you  a 
full  pardon  on  condition  that  you  will  take  an  oath  never 
again  to  bear  arms  against  the  King's  government." 

"Sir,"  said  Charlie  Mackey,  in  the  firmest  tones,  "I 
cannot  accept  pardon  on  these  terms.  It  must  be  uncon- 
ditional or  I  must  die, ' '  and  poor  Lydia  Mackey  cried  out, 
"I,  too,  must  die."  On  her  knees  she  plead  with  such 
fervor  and  eloquence  that  Tarleton  seemed  lost  for  a  mo- 
ment and  hesitated;  then  turning  to  the  young  Captain 
he  said  with  quivering  lips  and  a  voice  choking  with 
emotion : 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  93 

"  Cap  tain,  for  God's  sake  sign  my  name  to  this  paper, 
and  let  this  woman  go." 

With  this,  Mrs.  Mackey  sank  to  the  ground  exhausted, 
and  Col.  Tarleton  rode  off,  doubtless  happier  for  having 
spared  the  life  of  the  heroic  Lydia  's  husband. 

The  history  of  the  American  Revolution  can  hardly 
present  a  more  interesting  tableau  than  that  of  Lydia 
Mackey  begging  the  life  of  her  husband  at  the  hands  of  the 
brave  and  bloody  Tarleton,  and  it  is  probable  that  the 
i( Lydia  Mackey  victory"  was  the  first  ever  gained  over  the 
heart  of  this  redoubtable  commander,  and  it  is  very  certain 
that  Charles  Mackey  was  the  only  condemned  prisoner 
ever  liberated  by  him  without  taking  the  oath  of  allegienco 
to  the  Mother  Country. — MRS.  F.  H.  OKME,  Atlanta 
Chapter,  D.  A.  E. 


STATE  FLOWERS. 

In  most  instances,  the  state  floral  emblems  have  been 
adopted  by  the  vote  of  the  pupils  of  the  public  schools  of 
their  respective  states. 

Alabama,  goldenrod. 
Arizona,  suwarso. 
Arkansas,  apple  blossoms. 
California,  California  poppy. 
Colorado,  columbine. 
Connecticut,  mountain  laurel. 
Delaware,  peach  blossoms. 
Florida,  Japan  camellia. 
Georgia,  Cherokee  rose. 
Idaho,  syringa. 
Illinois,  rose. 
Indiana,  corn. 
Iowa,  wild  rose. 
Kansas,  sunflower. 
Louisiana,  magnolia. 
Maine,  pine  cone. 
Michigan,  apple  blossom. 


94  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Minnesota,  moccasin  flower. 

Mississippi,  magnolia. 

Missouri,  goldenrod. 

Montana,  bitter-root. 

Nebraska,   goldenrod. 

New  Jersey,  sugar  maple. 

Nevada,  sage  brush. 

New  York,  moss  rose. 

New  Mexico,  crimson  rambler  rose. 

North  Carolina,  chrysanthemum. 

North  Dakota,  goldenrod. 

Ohio,  buckeye. 

Oklahoma,  mistletoe. 

Oregon,  Oregon  grape. 

Rhode  Island,  violet. 

South  Carolina,  Carolina  palmetto. 

South  Dakota,  pasque  flora. 

Texas,  blue  bonnet. 

Utah,  sago  lily. 

Vermont,  red  clover. 

Washington,  rhododendron. 

Wisconsin,  violet. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  95 

THE  COUNTIES  OF  GEORGIA. 
BY  KATHARINE  B.  MASSEY. 

When  I  was  a  little  girl,  our  fad  was  the  possession  of 
a  charmstring.  This  was  a  string  of  buttons,  obtained  by 
coaxing  from  our  elders  or  barter  with  each  other,  and  con- 
stantly added  to  until  some  of  them  reached  the  length  of 
several  yards.  With  delightful  pride  we  told  over  the  list 
of  our  treasures.  "This  button,"  one  would  say,  "came 
from  Cousin  Mary's  wedding  dress;  this  my  Uncle  John 
gave  me ;  this  was  sent  to  me  from  China  by  my  aunt  who 
is  a  missionary  in  Canton ;  and  this  bright  brass  one  was  on 
my  father 's  uniform  during  the  war. ' '  Much  of  family  life 
and  many  loving  associations  were  thus  strung  together  for 
the  little  maiden.  In  some  such  way,  but  in  a  larger  sense, 
our  state  has  used  the  naming  of  its  counties  as  a  cord  of 
gold  on  which  to  hang  traditions  of  its  past,  memories  of 
its  heroes,  and  reverences  for  those  who  helped  us  when  help 
was  needed. 

A  group  of  seven  counties  embalms  the  names  of  the 
Indian  tribes  who  owned  our  hills  and  valleys  before  us, 
who  hunted  the  deer  with  flintheaded  arrows  where  now 
our  cities  stand,  and  threaded  their  trails  in  silent  forests 
where  today  our  cotton  fields  are  spread.  They  are  Catoosa, 
Chattahoochee,  Chattooga,  Cherokee,  Coweta,  Muscogee, 
Oconee — how  musically  the  syllables  fall  upon  the  ear.  It 
is  like  a  chime  of  silver  bells. 

Four  counties  may  be  set  together  as  commemorating 
large  events  in  history.  Columbia,  Oglethorpe,  Liberty, 
and  Union.  The  first  of  these  was  named  for  the  dauntless 
sailor  who,  possessed  with  the  faith  which  cared  naught  for 
all  other  men's  unbelief  and  rising  above  poverty,  discour- 
agement, and  mutiny,  held  his  way  westward  over  unknown 
seas  to  find  his  prophetic  vision  a  reality.  Oglethorpe  bears 
the  name  of  the  brave  soldier,  courteous  gentleman,  and 
broadminded  philanthropist,  who  founded  a  colony  for  op- 


96  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

pressed  debtors  to  give  them  a  new  chance  in  life.  Liberty 
County  has  a  pretty  little  story  of  its  own.  A  band  of 
Massachusetts  Puritans,  seeking  a  milder  climate,  settled 
first  in  South  Carolina,  and  not  being  fully  satisfied,  came 
on  to  St.  John's  Parish,  Georgia.  Their  distinguished  devo- 
tion to  the  cause  of  liberty  in  the  perilous  days  of  1776- 
1783  gained  for  them  that  name  when  the  parishes  were 
changed  into  counties.  Union  County  was  so  named  be- 
cause its  citizens  claimed  to  be  known  as  Union  men,  when 
the  rest  of  the  state  stood  for  state  rights.* 

Another  group  of  seven  counties  bears  the  name  of 
English  statesmen  who  spoke  for  us  in  the  halls  of  Parlia- 
ment and  withstood  the  tyranny  of  king  and  nation  in 
dealing  with  their  brothers  of  America.  They  were  the 
fiery-tongued  orator  Edmund  Burke,  the  commoners  Glynn 
and  Wilkes,  the  Duke  of  Richmond,  and  the  Earls  of  Chat- 
ham, Camden,  and  Efimgham. 

Three  other  foreigners,  lovers  of  liberty,  drew  sword 
and  fought  in  our  battles,  side  by  side  with  our  struggling 
heroes.  Georgia  has  honored  herself  by  naming  counties  for 
Baron  DeKalb,  Count  Pulaski,  and  General  LaFayette. 

Next  comes  the  long  muster-call  of  heroes  whose  names 
are  written  on  the  roll  of  fame  as  having  fought  for  the 
freedom  of  their  country — men  whose  names  recall  Bunker 
Hill  and  Valley  Forge,  King's  Mountain  and  Guilford 
Court  House,  and  all  the  grim  experiences  of  a  nation 
struggling  for  existence.  Georgia  has  named  counties  for 
Baker,  Bryan,  Butts,  Clarke,  (Gen.  Elijah,  who  fought  the 
Tories  in  our  own  state),  Clinch,  Early,  Greene,  (Gen. 
Nathaniel,  who  settled  on  his  grant  of  land  in  Georgia  after 
the  war,)  Jasper,  (the  brave  sergeant  who  leaped  over  the 
parapet  to  rescue  the  flag  at  Fort  Moultrie,)  Laurens,  Lee 
(Light  Horse  Harry,  father  of  the  grand  General  of  the 
Civil  War,)  Lincoln,  Macon,  Marion  (the  Swamp  Fox  of 
South  Carolina,)  Meri wether,  Montgomery,  Morgan,  New- 


*But   Georgia  was  at   that  time  intensely   Union,   although 
helieving  in  State  rights. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  97 

ton,  Putnam,  Screven,  Stewart,  Sumter,  Twiggs,  Taliaferro, 
Warren  (killed  at  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill,)  Wayne  (Mad 
Anthony,)  Wilkerson,  Paulding,  White,  Mclntosh — grand 
and  glorious  names  that  break  upon  the  ear  like  a  trumpet 
call,  inspiring  to  deeds  worthy  to  be  ranked  with  theirs. 
The  last  of  these  names,  Melntosh,  was  given  in  honor  of  a 
whole  family  which  had  contributed  many  sons  to  freedom 's 
cause. 

Seven  presidents  of  the  United  States  have  given  names 
to  our  counties.  They  are  Washington,  Jefferson,  Madison, 
Monroe,  Polk,  Taylor  and  Pierce. 

The  governors  of  Georgia  have  been  a  notable  line, 
strong  men  of  iron  will,  believers  in  state's  rights  and  up- 
holders of  the  dignity  of  the  commonwealth.  More  than 
once  they  have  withstood  the  national  government.  The 
list  of  them  includes  some  names  famous  for  other  services 
to  the  state  in  the  Revolution  and  the  Civil  War  as  well  as 
in  the  halls  of  Congress.  Those  for  whom  counties  are  named 
are:  Bulloch,  Early,  Elbert,  Emanuel,  Gilmer,  Gwinnett, 
Habersham,  Hall,  Heard,  Houston,  Irwin,  Jackson  (soldier 
and  statesman,)  Jenkins  (who  saved  the  executive  seal  of 
state  at  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  and  kept  it  until  military 
rule  was  over  and  it  could  be  returned  to  a  governor  legally 
elected  by  the  people,)  Johnson,  Lumpkin,  Mitchell,  Rabun, 
Schley,  Stephens  (giant  soul  in  a  frail  body,  whose  unheed- 
ed counsels  as  Vice-president  of  the  Southern  Confederacy 
might  have  prevented  much  of  the  bitterness  that  followed,) 
Talbot,  Telfair,  Towns,  Troup,  Walton,  Forsyth,  and  Tatt- 
nall.  Wisely  and  well  they  guided  the  ship  of  state  and 
left  a  priceless  heritage  of  precedent  to  their  successors. 

Georgia  has  named  fourteen  counties  for  statesmen  of 
national  fame — Calhoun,  Clay,  Webster — (these  three  made 
the  great  triumvirate  whose  eloquence  shook  the  land  in 
times  when  nullification  and  democracy  were  the  questions 
of  the  day,)  Bibb,  Franklin,  Brooks,  Carroll,  Douglas, 
Hancock  (one  of  the  first  to  lift  his  voice  against  British 
oppression  in  Massachusetts,)  Henry  (the  immortal  orator 


98  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

of  Virginia,)  Lowndes,  McDuffie,  Murray,  and  Randolph 
(quaint,  eloquent,  sarcastic  John  Randolph  of  Roanoke.) 

Of  her  own  sons  whose  voices  have  thundered  in  the 
halls  of  Congress,  or  guided  her  councils  at  home,  Georgia 
has  named  counties  for  Abraham  Baldwin  (who  first 
planned  the  state  university,)  Ben  Hill  (of  the  trumpet 
tongue,  who  first  dared  to  reply  to  northern  slanders,  to 
speak  the  truth  about  Andersonville,  to  show  that  we  had 
not  food,  clothing  and  medicine  for  our  own  soldiers  and 
that  we  did  the  best  we  could  for  the  unfortunate  prisoners 
who  fell  into  our  hands ;  claiming  the  respect  of  the  nation 
and  the  world  for  the  maligned  Southern  Confederacy.) 
Berrien,  Clayton,  Cobb,  Colquitt,  Crawford,  (William  H., 
our  candidate  for  the  presidency,)  Crisp,  Campbell,  Charl- 
ton,  Dawson,  Dougherty,  Floyd,  Haralson,  Jones,  Miller, 
Spanding,  Turner,  Walker,  and  Ware. 

Six  of  our  counties  bear  the  names  of  men  who  spent 
their  lives  fighting  the  Indians.  They  are  Appling,  Coffee, 
Butts,  Wilcox,  Thomas,  and  Dade.  Of  the  first  of  these  the 
story  is  told  that,  in  recognition  of  his  services,  the  state 
voted  him  a  sword  with  an  appropriate  inscription.  Before 
it  was  ready  for  presentation  the  brave  young  soldier  died. 
As  he  left  no  heir,  the  sword  was  kept  in  the  state  house  at 
Milledgeville  until  that  memorial  autumn  of  1864,  when  it 
disappeared.  Some  soldier  of  Sherman 's  army  thus  became 
richer  and  the  State  of  Georgia  poorer  by  a  handsome 
sword. 

The  Mexican  War  left  us  the  names  of  Echols,  Faniiin, 
Quitman,  and  Worth.  Other  brave  soldiers  of  the  state 
who  have  been  thus  honored  are  Glascock,  Milton,  Pickens, 
and  Pike. 

The  Civil  War  gave  to  us  the  names  of  Bartow  and 
Toombs.  Francis  C.  Bartow  said:  "I  go  to  illustrate  Geor- 
gia," and  fell  on  the  field  of  the  First  Battle  of  Maiiassas. 
General  Robert  Toombs  escaped  from  Georgia  on  his  mare, 
Grey  Alice,  when  every  road  and  ferry  was  guarded  by 
soldiers  watching  for  him,  made  his  way  to  England,  and 


INDIAN   TREATY   TREE,   MARIETTA,   GA. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  99 

lived  there  until  it  was  safe  for  him  to  return,  remaining  to 
the  end  of  his  life  an  ' '  unreconstructed  rebel. ' ' 

Four  counties,  Dodge,  lift,  Gordon,  and  Upson,  are 
named  for  captains  of  industry.  The  United  States  Navy 
gave  us  the  name  of  Decatur.  Banks  and  Terrell  are  called 
for  two  beloved  physicians  who  made  their  names  blessed 
in  the  homes  of  the  people  for  the  alleviation  of  pain  and 
the  saving  of  life.  In  both  cases  the  name  was  chosen  for 
the  county  by  the  citizens,  in  loving  recognition  of  the 
physician's  services. 

The  Lost  Cause  left  with  us  the  name  of  its  one  presi- 
dent, and  we  who  are  glad  that  it  is  the  Lost  Cause,  that 
slavery  is  no  longer  an  institution  in  our  midst  and  that 
Georgia  takes  her  rightful  place  in  the  sisterhood  of  states, 
nevertheless  claim  the  right  to  cherish  our  memories,  to 
welcome  Dixie  with  the  rebel  yell,  to  cover  our  graves  with 
flowers  on  the  twenty-sixth  of  April,  to  look  back  through  a 
mist  of  tears  to  Gettysburg  and  Appomattox,  and  to  call 
one  of  our  counties  Jeff  Davis. 

The  noble  preacher,  Whitfield,  who  helped  to  establish 
the  Bethesda  Orphan 's  Home,  gave  his  name  to  one  county ; 
and  Henry  Grady,  silver-tongued  and  golden-hearted  orator 
who  helped  to  heal  the  wounds  of  war  and  drew  together 
the  North  and  the  South  into  renewed  brotherhood,  is 
remembered  in  the  name  of  another.  Rockdale  is  so  called 
from  its  granite  rocks  and  wooded  dales.  One  is  named  for 
Robert  Fulton,  the  inventor,  one  for  Harris,  a  prominent 
jurist,  and  last  of  all,  Georgia  has  named  one  county  for  a 
woman — red-headed,  cross-eyed,  Tory-hating,  liberty-loving 
Nancy  Hart. 


100  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

AN  HISTORIC  TREE. 
MRS.  R.  C.  LITTLE,  Fielding  Lewis  Chapter. 

More  than  a  hundred  years  ago,  a  tiny  acorn,  dripped 
by  some  frisky  squirrel  or  flitting  bird,  fell  to  the  ground, 
where  it  lay  unheeded  and  unknown.  Pelted  by  winter 
storms,  it  sank  deep  into  the  soft  earth  where  it  was 
nourished  and  fed,  sending  out  rootlets  to  take  firm  hold 
of  the  kind  mother  who  had  sheltered  it. 

Soon  the  summer's  sun  called  it  from  its  underground 
bed  and  still  clinging  with  its  thread-like  roots,  it  pushed 
up  a  green  head  and  looked  around  the  beautiful  scenes  of 
woodland,  mountain  and  sky. 

Pleased  with  what  it  saw,  it  lifted  its  head  brighter  and 
higher  until  it  became  a  mighty  oak,  a  monarch  of  the  forest. 
Birds  and  squirrels  made  their  homes  in  it  and  beneath  its 
shade  rested  the  weary. 

All  the  country  around  belonged  to  and  was  inhabited 
by  the  Cherokee  Indians,  of  all  known  tribes  the  most 
civilized  and  enlightened.  No  doubt  their  papooses  swung 
on  the  branches  of  this  magnificent  tree  and  played  under 
its  wide  spreading  arms. 

With  the  coming  of  the  white  man,  a  town  grew  up — 
lovely  Marietta,  still  nestling  amid  the  shadows  of  Kenne- 
saw,  and  the  Indians  were  asked  to  leave  their  happy  homes, 
and  go  to  strange  lands  further  West.  Bewildered  and 
uncomprehending,  they  were  unwilling  to  go,  and  groups  of 
them  were  often  seen  beneath  this  same  mighty  oak — mighty 
even  them,  conferring  with  the  whites,  and  discussing  by 
signs  and  gestures,  the  momentous  question.  When,  finally, 
they  were  persuaded  to  accept  the  proposition  of  the  gov- 
ernment, they  met  in  council  beneath  their  favorite  tree 
and  signed  the  treaty,  by  which  they  agreed  to  leave  their 
beautiful  North  Georgia  homes  forever. 

Within  the  memory  of  the  oldest  inhabitants,  the  grand 
oak  became  historic.  It  is  still  standing,  and  has  showed  no 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  101 

signs  of  age,  until  a  fiery  bolt  found  its  lofty  height  and 
scathed  it  far  down  its  trunk. 

It  stands  in  the  yard  of  Mrs.  H.  G.  Cole,  and  is,  not- 
withstanding its  somewhat  crippled  condition,  the  admira- 
tion of  all  beholders.  Its  girth  near  the  ground  is  some- 
what over  eight  feet,  and  seven  feet  from  the  ground  it 
measures  considerably  more  than  twelve  feet  around. 

Mrs.  Cole,  though  not  aged  herself,  has  seen  four  genera- 
tions of  her  own  family  disporting  beneath  this  noble  tree, 
and  should  it  fall  because  of  age  and  decay,  she  and  her 
children  would  miss  and  mourn  it  as  a  dear  lost  friend. 


INDEPENDENCE  DAY. 

Original  poem  by  Mrs.  C.  M.  O'Hara,  Greenville,  Ga., 
read  on  the  Fourth  of  July,  1912,  at  the  meeting  of  David 
Meriwether  Chapter: 

It  has  been  one  hundred  and  thirty-six  years 

Since  our  forefathers  laid  aside  all  fears 

Of  the  mother  country,  and  boldly  said: 

The  price  of  liberty  in  blood  should  be  paid. 

The  Continental  Congress  in  Philadelphia  met 

And  resolved  that  we  should  independence  get, 

Thomas  Jefferson  wrote  a  long  declaration, 

Which  England  said  was  a  sad  desecration. 

So  our  mother  tried  to  exercise  her  right 

To  tax  her  children  and  foi'bidding  the  fight. 

The  battles  of  Lexington,  Bunker  Hill  and  others 

Showed  England  that  we  were  no  longer  brothers, 

After  the  first  gun  of  the  revolution  was  heard 

The  Americans  lost  fear  of  King  George  the  third; 

They  determined  with  Franklin  together  to  stand 

And  hold  fast  at  any  cost  the  cherished  land. 

Over  a  century  has  passed,  the  patriots  are  dust, 

In  the  homes  of  many  daughters  their  good  swords  rust, 

But  the  celebration  of  Independence  on  the  Fourth  of  July 

In  the  hearts  of  Americans  we  trust  will  never  die. 


102  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

KITTY. 

ETHEL  HILLYER  HARRIS. 
Written  for  the  Xavier  Chapter  of  the  D.  A.  R.,  Rome,  Ga. 

"Ah !  woman  in  this  world  of  ours, 

What  boon  can  be  compared  to  thee  ? 
How  slow  would  drag  life's  weary  hours, 
Though  man's  proud  brow  were  bound  in  flowers, 

And  his  the  wealth  of  land  and  sea, 
If  destined  to  exist  alone 
And,  ne'er  call  woman's  heart  his  own." 

— Morris. 

PROLOGUE. 

All  day  long  there  had  been  a  vague  unrest  in  the  old 
colonial  home,  all  day  the  leaves  had  quivered  on  the  banks 
of  the  Mataponi  River;  the  waves  were  restless,  the  dog  in 
his  kennel  howled  fitfully ;  the  birds  and  the  chickens  sought 
their  roosts  quiveringly,  whimsically,  and  when  night  had 
let  her  sable  curtain  down,  a  lurid  glare  shot  athwart  the 
sky,  in  a  strange  curved  comet-like  shape.  It  was  the 
Indian  summer,  October  in  her  glory  of  golden-rods, 
sumachs,  and  the  asters  in  the  wood.  But,  hist!  hark! 
what  breaks  upon  the  autumn  stillness  and  the  quiet  of  the 
colonial  household  on  the  Mataponi, ? 

It  was  the  cannon  at  the  siege  of  Yorktown,  forty  miles 
away.  The  French  fleet  were  making  blazing  half  circles 
on  the  sky  seen  from  their  fortifications  even  thus  far  below. 

Through  the  long  night  the  boom !  boom !  boom !  con- 
tinued, the  simple,  loyal  folks  knowing  nothing  of  the 
result. 

At  last,  wearied  and  spent,  with  a  prayer  to  the  All 
Father  to  save  America,  they  sought  their  welcome  couches. 
Among  them  was  Kitty,  the  idolized  daughter  of  the  family. 

Soft !  step  easy !  as  we  push  aside  the  chintz  curtains  of 
her  four-poster  and  gaze  upon  the  child,  to  exclaim:  How 
innocent  is  youth !  Her  seventeen  years  lie  upon  her  pink 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  103 

cheeks,  and  shimmering  curly  tresses  as  lightly  as  a  hum- 
ning  bird  in  the  heart  of  roses.  Her  lithesome  form  makes  a 
deep  indenture  in  the  thick  featherbed,  the  gay  patchwork 
quilt  half  reveals,  and  half  conceals  the  grace  of  rounded 
arm  and  neck  and  breast,  a  sigh  escapes  her  coral  lips,  one 
hand  is  thrust  beneath  the  pillow,  she  dreams ! 

On  the  chair  her  quilted  podusouy  and  long  stays  are 
carelessly  thrown.  Her  Louis  Seize  slippers  with  red  heels 
are  on  the  floor,  and  the  old  clock  on  the  stair  is  ticking, 
ticking,  ticking. 

Kitty  is  dreaming.  Of  what?  The  greatest  moment  in 
our  national  history.  Dream  on  sweet  maid,  closer,  closer 
point  the  hands;  it  nears  three  o'clock  Oct.  19,  1781.  A 
wild  cry,  and  the  whole  household  is  awake. 

Swift  running  to  and  fro, 

Smiles,  tears,  shouts,  "glory,"  "glory,"  "God  be 
praised. ' ' 

Such  the  sounds  that  faintly  reach  the  dreaming  senses 
of  our  Kitty.  And  then  her  father  with  a  kiss  and  hug 
pulls  her  out  of  bed  with  "Awake  lass!  awake!  awake! 
Cornwallis  has  surrendered." 

In  her  night  gown  from  her  latticed  window  Kitty  saw 
the  courier  galloping  through  the  little  hamlet ;  pausing  at 
her  father's  gate  to  give  the  message  of  our  conquest  over 
the  British,  and  then  galloping  on  towards  the  North,  for 
he  was  on  the  direct  route  from  Yorktown  to  Philadelphia 
where  Congress  was  in  session. 

By  the  time  Kitty  had  pompadoured  her  hair,  and 
donned  her  paviered  print  gown,  all  the  parish  bells  were 
ringing  for  joy.  From  Georgia  to  Maine  bells  were  sound- 
ing; peals  of  liberty  and  peace  filled  the  air  with  prayers 
and  praise  and  service  to  God  took  up  the  glad  hour  and 
over  and  over  the  refrain  was  sung  "Cornwallis  is  taken! 
Cornwallis  is  taken. ' ' 

Ah,  dear  Kitty,  and  quaint  little  tableau  of  the  long  ago, 
five  generations  coming  and  going,  in  whose  veins  beats 
your  loyal  blood  still  listen  and  tremble  and  glow  with 


104  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

pride  at  your  legend  of  the  siege  of  Yorktown,  and  better 
still,  sweetest  of  all  the  long  agone  ancestors  more  than  five 
nations,  indeed  every  nation  honors  and  makes  low 
obeisance  to  the  stars  and  the  stripes.  ' '  Old  glory !  long  may 
she  wave  o'er  the  land  of  the  free  and  the  home  of  the 
brave." 

CHAPTER  FIRST. 

"Thinkest  thou  existence  doth  depend  on  time? 
It  doth;  but  actions  are  our  epochs." 

In  1784  or  85,  Mr.  Carlton,  who  had  his  home  on  the 
Mataponi  River,  moved  with  his  family  to  Georgia. 

After  Cornwallis  had  delivered  his  sword  to  Washing- 
ton, a  little  group  of  emigrants  might  have  been  seen  at 
Yorktown ;  among  them  the  families  of  Edmund  Byne  and 
Robert  Carlton. 

Out  in  the  blue  harbour  the  nifty  little  brig  "Nancy" 
lay,  all  sails  spread  ready  to  embark  to  Savannah,  Ga. 

These  two  above  named  gentlemen,  took  passage  with 
their  families,  servants  and  household  goods,  and  they  were 
said  to  be  persons  of  sincere,  and  devoted  piety,  full  of 
hope  and  courage.  They  expected  to  reach  Savannah  in 
three  days. 

However,  contrary  winds  set  in,  and  the  brig  daring 
not  hug  the  treacherous  coasts  of  the  Carolinas  sped  far  out 
to  sea  amid  a  terrific  storm.  She  drifted  for  weeks  at  the 
mercy  of  the  waves,  until  the  passengers  almost  despaired 
of  seeing  land.  If  in  our  prologue,  we  saw  a  pretty,  and 
partly  imaginary  picture  of  Katherine  Carlton,  known  as 
Kitty,  for  she  it  is  now  eighteen  years  of  age,  we  see  her 
again  and  in  true  historical  facts  receive  her  account  of 
long  ago,  of  the  peril.  Thus  reads  her  account :  ' '  One  time 
it  seemed  as  if  the  end  had  come.  'Twas  night.  The 
passengers  were  lying  in  their  berths  enduring  as  well  as 
they  could  the  dangers  of  the  hour,  when  suddenly  the  ship 
careened,  seemingly  falling  on  its  side.  It  was  then  the 
voice  of  one  of  those  pious  men  was  heard  amidst  the  howl- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  105 

ing  winds  'Lord  help  us  up,'  and  straightway  the  ship  was 
set  upright  and  the  danger  was  passed. ' ' 

The  little  party  after  landing  on  our  beautiful  south 
Georgia  coast,  sweet  with  golden  jasmines,  and  long  moss 
on  the  beautiful  braided  live  oak,  proceeded  up  the  country, 
in  true  emigrant  fashion,  in  wagons. 

Imagination,  that  merry,  fantastic  jade,  will  not  let  my 
pen  be  steady.  A  thousand  pictures  obtrude.  Kitty,  her 
head  so  curly,  eyes  so  dark  and  soft,  thrust  from  out  the 
wagons  canvassed  top,  or  again  her  snowy  fingers  playing 
in  the  cool  waters  of  a  running  brook,  when  the  team  stops 
to  feed  and  drink.  Then  Mr.  Carlton,  brave,  resolute  and 
the  camp  fire,  the  smell  of  broiled  bacon,  the  dog  on  trail 
of  a  rabbit,  the  straw  for  seats,  and  weird  firelight,  and 
above  all,  the  eternal  stars  of  heaven. 

But  we  must  hasten,  though  the  chronicle,  which  is 
reliable,  states  that  it  took  five  weeks  to  reach  their  desti- 
nation in  Burke  County. 

As  they  approached  the  Northern  border  of  "Wilkes 
County,  the  trees  grew  taller,  and  the  red  oak,  the  white 
oak,  burch,  and  maple,  the  crimson  honeysuckle,  and  wild 
violets  and  muscadine  vines  took  the  place  of  yellow  jas- 
mine, and  moss  and  whispering  pines. 

It  was  indeed  a  forest  primeval,  a  virgin  soil,  and  a 
new  land.  So  on  the  last  day  of  their  tiresome  journey, 
early  one  morning,  they  came  to  a  creek.  There  was  no 
bridge,  and  it  was  plain  that  the  stream  had  to  be  forded. 

The  wagons  were  moving  slowly  along.  Katherine  and 
her  sister  walking  in  front.  A  discussion  arose:  ''What 
about  the  girls  ?  Here !  come  Kitty ! "  or  "  Stop,  Kitty !  don 't 
take  off  your  slippers ;  you  can 't  wade. ' '  About  that  time 
up  rode  a  gallant  revolutionary  soldier  named  Captain  John 
Freeman,  who  boldly  said  "  I  '11  take  Kitty ' '  and  in  a  trice 
he  had  the  fair  young  lady  behind  him  on  his  own  horse, 
and  the  limpid  waters  of  our  clear  Georgia  stream  were 
laying  its  flanks  as  he  proceeded  across  the  stream. 


106  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

CHAPTER  SECOND. 

"The  wagons  have  all  forded  the  brook  as  it  flows,  and  then  the 

rear  guard  stays — 

To  pick  the  purple  grapes  that  are  hanging  from  the  boughs." 

— Edward  Everett  Hale. 

While  our  heroine  is  riding  along  in  the  dewy  morn  of 
the  day,  and  at  the  same  time  enjoying  the  beauties  of 
nature  and  no  doubt  with  her  lithe  young  body  leaning 
against  the  Captain,  causing  his  heart  to  beat  a  double 
quick,  we  will  go  on  with  our  narrative. 

Captain  John  Freeman  was  a  native  Georgian,  a  Revo- 
lutionary soldier,  he  was  present  at  the  siege  of  Charles- 
town  and  Savannah,  a  participant  in  the  battles  of  Cowpens, 
King's  Mountain  and  Guilford  Court  House,  at  the  battle 
of  Kettle  Creek,  and  also  at  the  capture  of  Augusta  in 
Georgia. 

In  most  of  his  adventures  in  the  Revolutionary  war, 
Captain  Freeman  had  with  him  a  colored  boy  named  Am- 
brose, who  lived  to  a  very  great  age  and  was  well  known  to 
the  younger  generation  as  "Uncle  Ambrose."  He  had  his 
own  cabin  in  Athens,  Georgia.  Incidents  in  regard  to  him 
were  handed  by  tradition.  He  had  on  his  left  arm  the  scar 
of  a  sabre  cut,  made  by  British  dragoons  when  General 
Tarleton's  men  were  attacking  and  endeavoring  to  get 
away  with  the  American  trooper 's  horses  that  had  been  left 
at  the  camp,  and  which  it  was  in  part,  the  duty  of  the  boy 
Ambrose  to  keep.  The  British  dragoons  had  possession  of 
the  horses  for  awhile  and  Ambrose  a  prisoner  also,  but  by  a 
rapid  retaliation  the  horses  and  servants  were  recovered. 
Old  Ambrose  used  to  tell  about  having  been  present  at  th(> 
siege  of  Savannah,  when  Count  Pulaski,  one  of  the  Ameri- 
can Generals,  was  killed.  He  said  that  he  was  back  in  the 
edge  of  the  pine,  or  timber  when  the  American  army 
charged  on  the  British  fort  and  breastworks.  He  described 
Pulaski  as  mounted  on  a  spirited  horse,  with  a  great  white 
plume  in  his  hat,  and  how  gallantly  he  led  the  Americans 
in  their  advance.  He  saw  Pulaski  when  he  fell  from  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  107 

horse,   and   was   present  at  the   point  to   which   he   was 
brought  back,  mortally  wounded. 

CHAPTER  THIRD. 

"Blessed  with  that  charmed  certainty  to  please 
How  oft  her  eyes  read  his; 
Her  gentle  mind,  to  his  thoughts,  his  wishes,  inclined." 

ANONYMOUS. 

As  might  be  guessed,  in  a  few  short  months  after  cross- 
ing the  creek  together  on  horse-back,  Captain  John  Free- 
man led  Kathrine  Carlton  to  the  altar. 

In  regard  to  her  after-life,  she  was  a  wonder  for  those 
times,  a  great  reader  and  a  fine  housekeeper,  a  fine  recon- 
teur;  yet  with  all,  the  soul  of  hospitality.  She  had  a 
healthy,  strong  mind;  was  imperious  in  her  bearing,  a 
devoted  member  of  the  church,  a  power  in  her  family,  and 
section. 

Captain  Freeman  was  a  wealthy  man,  and  took  her  at 
times  in  a  carriage  to  the  Mountains  of  North  Carolina  on  a 
pleasure  trip. 

She  bore  him  one  child,  Rebecca,  of  a  temperamental 
nature,  and  of  deep  piety  like  her  mother.  This  child  was 
the  author  of  many  lovely  poems. 

Captain  Freeman  did  not  live  to  be  very  old.  After 
his  death  Mrs.  Freeman  met  losses  which  she  bravely  bore, 
Rebecca  married  Shaler  Hillyer  and  from  this  union  sprang 
all  the  Georgia  Hillyers.  And  to  this  day  "Grandma 
Freeman"  is  almost  a  sainted  word  in  the  family,  so  strong 
was  her  character  and  so  deep  her  love  for  others.  She 
lived  to  be  eighty-nine  years  old.  In  her  bedroom  was  an 
old  time  tall  clock  that  Captain  Freeman  had  brought  over 
from  England  when  he  brought  his  blue  china  dishes.  As 
she  drew  her  last  breath,  a  beloved  niece  looked  at  the  clock 
but  it  had  stopped.  That  clock  is  still  owned  by  one  of  her 
descendants,  and  it  is  not  a  legend  but  a  fact,  that  when 
anything  important  happens,  in  the  family,  if  it  is  running, 
it  stops,  if  it  is  not  running,  it  strikes. 


108  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

But  to  return  to  the  Bynes :  to  show  that  we  are  journey- 
ing on  to  meet  those  who  are  journeying  on  to  meet  us. 

Mr.  Bynes'  daughter  Annie,  she  who  came  in  the  brig 
"Nancy"  with  Mr.  Carlton,  married  a  Mr.  Harris,  their 
daughter  married  Mr.  Hansell,  and  his  granddaughter,  the 
beautiful  golden  haired  Leila,  a  noted  belle  and  beauty,  of 
Atlanta,  Georgia,  married  a  Mr.  Llewelynn  P.  Hillyer,  of 
Macon,  Georgia,  the  great  grandson  of  Kitty  Carlton. 

If  the  writer  may  be  pardoned  for  saying  so,  she  is  the 
granddaughter  of  Junius  Hillyer,  the  grandson  of  Kitty 
Carlton ;  and  she  also  pleads  guilty  to  the  soft  impeachment 
of  having  married  Hamilton  Harris,  a  relative  of  the  Byne 
family,  too. 

Two  shall  be  born  the  whole  wide  apart  and  time  and 
tide  will  finally  bring  them  together.  Affinity,  congeniality, 
fate!  What? 

Hurrah  for  the  brave  little  sailing  vessel,  the  nifty, 
white  winged  brig,  ' '  The  Nancy. ' ' 


BATTLE  OF  KETTLE  CREEK. 

No  battle  of  Revolutionary  times  was  more  instrumental 
in  making  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis,  at  Yorktown,  pos- 
sible than  was  the  battle  of  Kettle  Creek.  As  it  was  at  that 
period  of  the  war  the  only  American  victory  in  the  far 
South,  and  though  it  seemed  unimportant,  it  was  a  promi- 
nent factor  in  holding  the  militia  together  and  stimulating 
them  to  fight  to  ultimate  victory. 

After  the  battle  of  Monmouth,  the  largest  engagement 
in  the  North  closed,  the  scene  drifted  to  the  South.  Georgia 
was  practically  subdued  by  the  British  in  January,  1779. 
General  Provost,  commanding  the  British  in  South  Caro- 
lina, and  Commodore  Parker  and  Lieut.  Campbell,  on  the 
sea,  had  captured  Savannah  and  being  so  encouraged,  made 
plans  to  aid  the  Tories  in  crushing  all  patriots  who  dared 
to  resist. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  109 

On  February  14th,  1779,  at  War  Hill,  Wilkes  County, 
Georgia,  the  battle  of  Kettle  Creek  was  fought.  Between 
four  hundred  and  five  hundred  Americans  were  in  this 
engagement  under  Col.  Pickens,  against  seven  hundred  men 
under  Col.  Boyd,  a  British  officer,  who  was  secretly  em- 
ployed by  the  British  to  organize  a  band  of  Tories  in  South 
Carolina  and  who  was  on  his  way  to  join  the  British  Army 
and  had  planned  to  take  Augusta  on  his  route. 

Col.  Boyd  was  mortally  wounded  in  this  battle.  As  soon 
as  Col.  Pickens  heard  of  it  he  immediately  visited  his 
opponent  and  offered  him  any  assistance  within  his  power. 
The  dying  man  left  with  him  keepsakes  and  letters  which 
were  promptly  delivered  to  his  wife  after  his  death. 

In  Vol.  II,  "Wm.  Bacon  Stevens '  History  of  Georgia,  New 
York,  1847,  Bishop  Stevens  gives  the  following  account  of 
this  battle : 

"The  enemy  having  effected  a  passage  into  Georgia,  Pickens 
and  Dooly,  now  joined  by  Col.  Clarke,  resolved  to  follow;  and 
they  accordingly  crossed  the  Savannah  on  February  12,  1779, 
and  camped  the  following  night  within  four  miles  of  the  enemy 
Forming  the  line  of  march  in  the  order  of  battle,  the  Americans 
now  prepared  once  more,  at  a  great  disadvantage  of  numbers,  to 
contest  with  the  Tories  for  the  supremacy  of  upper  Georgia. 
Much  depended  on  this  battle.  If  Boyd  should  be  successful  i-i 
driving  back  the  Americans  under  such  men  as  Pickens  and 
Dooly  and  Clarke,  he  might  rest  assured  that  no  further  molesta- 
tion, at  least  for  a  very  long  time,'  would  follow,  and  all  would 
yield  to  the  British  power,  while  on  the  other  hand  should  the 
Americans  be  successful,  it  would  not  only  crush  the  Tory  power, 
already  so  galling  to  the  people,  but  protect  them  from  further 
insult,  and  give  a  stimulus  to  American  courage,  which  a  long 
series  of  disasters  made  essential.  It  was  a  moment  big  with 
the  fate  of  upper  Georgia. 

"Boyd,  with  a  carelesness  evincing  great  lack  of  military 
skill  and  prudence,  had  halted  on  the  morning  of  the  14th  of 
February,  1779,  at  a  farm  house  near  Kettle  Creek,  in  Wilkes 
County,  having  no  suspicion  of  the  near  approach  of  the  Ameri- 
cans, and  his  army  was  dispersed  in  various  directions,  some  killing 
and  gathering  stock,  others  engaged  in  cooking  and  in  different 


110  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

operations.  Having  reconnoitered  the  enemy's  position,  the 
Americans,  under  Pickens,  advanced  in  three  divisions;  the  right 
under  Col.  Dooly,  the  left  under  Col.  Clarke  and  the  center  led 
by  the  Commander  himself,  with  orders  not  to  fire  a  gun  until 
within  at  least  thirty  paces.  As  the  center,  led  by  Pickens, 
marched  to  the  attack,  Boyd  met  them  at  the  head  of  a  select 
party,  his  line  being  protected  by  a  fence  filled  with  fallen  timber, 
which  gave  him  a  great  advantage  over  the  troops  in  front. 
Observing  this  half  formed  abatis,  Pickens  filed  off  to  a  rising 
ground  on  his  right,  and  thence  gaining  the  flank  of  Boyd  rushed 
upon  him  with  great  bravery,  the  enemy  fleeing  when  they  saw 
their  leader  shot  down  before  them.  He  was  sustained  in  this 
charge  by  Dooly  and  Clarke,  and  the  enemy  after  fighting  with 
great  bravery,  retired  across  the  creek,  but  were  rallied  by  Major 
Spurgen  on  a  hill  beyond,  where  the  battle  was  again  renewed 
with  fierceness.  But  Col.  Clarke,  with  about  fifty  Georgians, 
having  discovered  a  path  leading  to  a  ford,  pushed  through  it, 
though  in  doing  so  he  encountered  a  severe  fire  and  had  his  horse 
shot  down  under  him,  and  by  a  circuitous  route  rose  upon  the  hill 
in  the  rear  of  Spurgen,  opening  a  deadly  fire.  The  enemy  hemmed 
in  on  both  sides,  fled,  and  were  hotly  pursued  by  the  victors,  until 
the  conquest  was  complete.  For  an  hour  and  a  half,  under  great 
disadvantage  and  against  a  force  almost  double,  had  the  Americans 
maintained  the  now  unequal  contest,  and  though  once  or  twice  it 
seemed  as  if  they  must  give  way,  especially  when  the  Tories  had 
gained  the  hill  and  were  reinforced  under  Spurgen;  yet  the 
masterly  stroke  of  Clarke,  with  his  few  brave  Georgians,  turned 
the  scale,  and  victory,  bloody  indeed,  but  complete,  was  ours." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  111 


THE  DARING  EXPLOIT  OF  GRACE  AND 
RACHAEL  MARTIN. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  War  of  the  American  Revolu- 
tion, Abram  and  Elizabeth  Martin  were  living  in  Ninety 
Six  District,  now  Edgefield  County,  South  Carolina,  with 
their  nine  children.  Seven  of  their  eight  sons  were  old 
enough  to  enter  the  army,  and  were  noted  for  their  gallan- 
try and  patriotic  zeal.  The  wives  of  the  two  eldest  sons, 
Grace  Waring  and  Rachael  Clay,  during  the  absence  of 
their  husbands,  remained  with  their  mother-in-law. 

One  evening  the  news  reached  them  that  a  courier  bear- 
ing important  despatches  was  to  pass  that  night  along  the 
road  guarded  by  two  British  officers.  Grace  and  Rachael 
determined  to  waylay  the  party  and  obtain  possession  of 
the  papers.  Disguised  in  their  husbands'  clothes,  and  well 
provided  with  arms,  they  hid  in  the  bushes  at  a  point  on  the 
road  where  the  escort  must  pass.  Darkness  favored  their 
plans  and  when  the  courier  and  his  guards  approached  they 
were  completely  taken  by  surprise  by  the  suddenness  of  the 
attack.  They  had  no  choice  but  to  surrender.  The  young 
women  took  their  papers,  released  the  soldiers  on  parole, 
and  hastened  home  to  send  the  important  documents  to 
General  Greene  by  a  trusty  messenger. 

The  paroled  officers  returned  by  the  road  they  had  come 
and  stopping  at  the  home  of  the  Martins,  asked  accommoda- 
tions for  the  night.  The  hostess  asked  the  reason  for  their 
prompt  return.  They  replied  by  showing  their  paroles,  and 
saying  they  had  been  taken  prisoners  by  two  Rebel  lads. 
The  ladies  rallied  them  on  their  lack  of  courage  and  asked 
if  they  were  unarmed.  They  said  they  were  armed  but  were 
suddenly  taken  off  their  guard. 

They  went  on  their  way  the  next  morning  without  a 
suspicion  that  they  owed  their  capture  to  the  women  whose 
hospitality  they  had  claimed. — Grace  L.  Martin,  Piedmont 
Continental  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


112  REVOLUTIONAEY  READER 


A  REVOLUTIONARY  PUZZLE. 

These  old  rhymes  were  written  in  the  early  part  of  the 
Revolutionary  War — about  1776.  If  read  as  written  they 
are  a  tribute  to  the  king  and  his  army,  but  if  read  down- 
ward on  either  side  of  the  comma,  they  indicate  an  unmis- 
takable spirit  of  rebellion  to  both  king  and  parliament. 
The  author  is  unknown : 

Hark,  hark,  the  trumpet  sounds,  the  din  of  war's  alarms 

O'er  seas  and  solid  grounds,  doth  call  us  all  to  arms 

Who  for  King  George  doth  stand,  their  honors  shall  soon  shine 

Their  ruin  is  at  hand,  who  with  the  congress  join. 

The  acts  of  parliament,  in  them  I  might  delight, 

I  hate  their  cursed  intent,  who  for  the  congress  fight 

The  Tories  of  the  day,  they  are  my  daily  toast, 

They  soon  will  sneak  away,  who  independence  boast, 

Who  nonresistant  hold,  they  have  my  hand  and  heart 

May  they  for  slaves  be  sold,  who  act  the  Whiggish  part, 

On  Mansfield,  North  and  Bute,  may  daily  blessings  pour, 

Confusion  and  dispute,  on  congress  evermore; 

To  North  and  British  Lord,  may  honors  still  be  done, 

I  wish  to  block  and  cord,  to  General  Washington. 


SOUTH  CAROLINA  IN  THE  REVOLUTION. 

(Prize  essay  written  by  Miss  Leota  George  of  Sandy 
Springs  in  competition  for  the  medal  offered  by  Cateechee 
Chapter,  D.  A.  R.,  to  English  class  in  Anderson  College, 
S.  C.) 

South  Carolina  had  a  large  share  in  winning  American 
independence.  Several  decisive  battles  were  fought  on  her 
soil.  For  the  struggle  she  furnished  far-sighted  statesmen, 
brilliant  leaders  for  the  battlefield,  and  troops  of  patriotic, 
devoted  men.  Her  daughters  brought  to  the  conflict  im- 
measurable aid,  comfort  and  influence.  The  men  of  South 
Carolina  saved  their  own  state  and  were  able  to  give  invalu- 
able aid  to  their  countrymen  in  other  sections. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  113 

South  Carolina  had  been  settled  by  the  Huguenots,  Eng- 
lish, Scotch-Irish,  Welsh  and  Germans — people  from  the 
sturdiest  and  most  progressive  countries  of  the  world. 
Their  experiences  in  their  new  environment  tended  to  make 
them  independent  and  self-reliant.  Their  years  of  hard- 
ships and  strifes  only  served  to  make  them  more  vigorous. 
They  increased  rapidly  in  population  and  built  up  an  active 
trade.  South  Carolina  became  one  of  the  most  prosperous 
of  the  colonies.  The  colonists  of  the  lower  country  were 
people  of  learning  and  culture.  The  settlers  of  the  middle 
and  upper  country  were  energetic,  patriotic,  and  noble. 
There  was  no  aristocracy.  There  were  quite  a  number  of 
able  clergymen,  skilled  physicians,  and  well  trained  lawyers 
among  the  South  Carolinians.  They  had  wealth  without 
luxury.  They  suffered  no  religious  restraint.  Every  cir- 
cumstance helped  to  develop  them  into  a  distinctive,  inde- 
pendent people. 

The  injustice  and  selfishness  of  British  authority  at 
once  aroused  the  anger  of  these  spirited  settlers.  The 
Stamp  Act  met  with  general  opposition.  South  Carolina  at 
once  protested  against  this  unjust  law  and  would  not  allow 
the  stamps  to  be  sold.  After  the  repeal  of  the  Stamp  Act 
Great  Britain  made  a  second  attempt  to  obtain  money  from 
the  colonists  by  placing  a  tax  upon  glass,  wine,  oil,  paper, 
painter's  colors  and  tea.  The  vigorous  objections  of  the 
colonists  caused  her  to  withdraw  the  tax  from  everything 
except  tea.  But  the  colonists  were  unwilling  to  accept  any- 
thing but  full  justice  from  the  hands  of  Great  Britain. 

The  South  Carolinians  had  many  determined  and  active 
leaders  in  their  opposition  to  British  tyranny  and  in  the 
avowal  of  their  rights  to  govern  themselves.  Christopher 
Gadsen,  William  Henry  Drayton,  Arthur  Middleton  and 
David  Ramsay  impressed  upon  the  people  the  necessity  of 
fighting  for  their  liberty  and  urged  them  to  prepare  for  a 
war  with  England.  Christopher  Gadsen,  Thomas  Lynch, 
John  Rutledge,  Arthur  Middleton  and  Edward  Rutledge 
were  chosen  by  the  South  Carolinians  to  represent  them  at 


114  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

the  first  continental  congress  at  Philadelphia  in  1774.  These 
men  had  had  a  prominent  part  in  that  meeting.  The  broad- 
minded,  far-sighted  Christopher  Gadsen  was  the  first  man 
to  see  that  independence  must  eventually  come.  At  this 
meeting  he  was  the  first  to  suggest  absolute  independence. 
"William  Henry  Drayton  concluded  one  of  his  speeches  in 
South  Carolina  with  this  excellent  advice:  "Let  us  offer 
ourselves  to  be  used  as  instruments  of  God  in  this  work  in 
order  that  South  Carolina  may  become  a  great,  a  free,  a 
pious  and  a  happy  people." 

On  March  26,  1776,  the  provincial  congress  adopted  a 
new  Constitution  and  South  Carolina  became  a  free  and 
independent  state.  She  was  the  first  of  the  thirteen  colonies 
to  set  up  a  government  of  her  own.  John  Rutledge  was 
made  president  and  Henry  vice-president. 

The  first  battle  of  the  Revolution  was  fought  November 
12,  1775,  when  two  British  war  vessels  made  an  unsuccess- 
ful attack  on  a  South  Carolina  vessel.  The  British  suffered 
their  first  complete  defeat  in  America  at  Charles  Town, 
June  28, 1776.  Under  Sir  Peter  Parker  the  enemy  attacked 
Ft.  Moultrie.  Under  the  blue  Carolina  flag  with  its  cres- 
cent and  the  word  "Liberty,"  upon  it,  the  patriots,  with 
Col.  Moultrie  as  leader,  courageously  resisted  the  attack. 
In  this  battle  the  immortal  Jasper  braved  the  enemy's  fire 
in  rescuing  the  fallen  flag  and  replacing  it  upon  the  fort. 
The  splendid  victory  at  Ft.  Moultrie  gave  more  confidence 
to  the  colonists  and  inspired  them  with  new  zeal.  The 
colonists  under  William  Thompson  defeated  the  British  in 
a  second  attempt  to  take  Charles  Town  in  June,  1776. 

For  about  two  years  following  this  battle  the  British 
army  abandoned  their  attempt  to  conquer  South  Carolina. 
However,  she  was  far  from  being  peaceful  during  this 
period.  Her  settlers  were  not  a  homogeneous  people.  No 
bond  of  sympathy  united  them  in  fighting  for  a  common 
cause.  Bands  of  Tories  had  formed  in  the  interior  and  were 
as  difficult  to  overcome  as  the  British  themselves.  Under 
Fletchall  and  Cunningham  they  committed  many  bloody 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  115 

outrages  and  did  an  incalculable  amount  of  harm.  They 
stirred  up  strife  among  the  Indians  and  acquired  their  aid 
in  fighting  the  patriots.  Some  of  the  severest  struggles  of 
the  Revolution  took  place  between  the  opposing  factions  in 
South  Carolina.  Andrew  Williamson,  James  Williams  and 
Andrew  Pickens  were  active  in  defending  the  upland, 
country  against  the  Tories  and  Indians. 

In  April  and  May  of  1780  the  British  under  Gen.  Clin- 
ton again  attacked  Charles  Town.  For  three  months  four 
thousand  ill-fed,  ill-clad,  and  undisciplined  patriots  with- 
stood the  attacks  of  twelve  thousand  of  the  best  of  the 
British  troops.  Finally,  the  South  Carolinians  were  forced 
to  surrender.  Fast  following  this  defeat  came  pillage,  de- 
vastations and  repeated  disasters.  In  the  upper  country 
the  British  under  cruel  Tarleton  followed  up  their  victories 
with  bloody  outrages.  Clinton  left  Cornwallis  in  command 
of  the  British  forces  in  the  south.  The  cruelties  of  this 
officer  greatly  aroused  the  anger  of  the  Carolinians.  Sum- 
ter,  Marion  and  Pickens  suddenly  appeared  upon  the  scene 
of  battle.  They  rallied  the  scattered  forces  and  began  their 
peculiar  mode  of  warfare.  By  means  of  the  ingenuity  and 
indomitable  courage  of  Sumter,  the  spirited  ' '  Game  Cock, ' ' 
the  enemy  was  harassed  and  numerous  little  victories  were 
won  from  them.  These  successes  were  a  great  encourage- 
ment to  the  Carolinians.  Sumter,  aided  by  patriot  bands 
under  John  Thomas,  Thomas  Brandon  and  Edward  Hamp- 
ton, succeeded  in  driving  the  British  out  of  northern  Caro- 
lina. 

About  this  time,  Gates  and  DeKalb  were  sent  to  the 
relief  of  the  South.  On  account  of  the  poor  generalship  of 
Gates  the  Americans  were  defeated  at  Camden,  August  16, 
1780,  by  the  enemy  under  the  command  of  Cornwallis. 
Francis  Marion,  the  elusive  ' '  Swamp  Fox, ' '  made  repeated 
attacks  upon  the  British  forces  and  with  the  help  of  Sumter, 
Harden  and  McDonald,  again  gained  control  of  the  upper 
country.  On  October  7,  1780,  Sumter 's  men  led  by  Lacey, 


116  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Williams,  and  Hill  helped  to  win  a  battle  from  the  enemy 
under  Ferguson  at  Kings  Mountain. 

In  January,  1781,  Gen.  Daniel  Morgan  of  Virginia,  aid- 
ed by  Andrew  Pickens  with  his  body  of  riflemen,  won  a  com- 
plete victory  over  the  British  at  Cowpens.  Gen.  Greene  had 
brought  some  troops  into  South  Carolina.  The  combined 
forces  of  Sumter,  Pickens,  Marion,  Lee  and  Greene  gradual- 
ly drove  the  British  into  Charles  Town.  Charles  Town  was 
evacuated  December  14,  1782. 

South  Carolina 's  activities  were  not  confined  to  her  own 
borders.  On  several  occasions  she  had  sent  troops  to  Geor- 
gia to  help  defend  this  feeble  colony.  The  South  Caroli- 
nians had  captured  a  supply  of  powder  in  the  early  part  of 
the  war  and  sent  it  north  to  Washington  at  the  critical 
point  where  his  supply  had  given  out.  It  was  a  South 
Carolinian  who  had  secured  aid  from  France  for  the 
patriots.  This  was  exceedingly  important  since  the  French 
army  and  fleet  played  an  important  part  in  the  capture  oi 
Cornwallis  at  Yorktown. 

In  the  great  fight  for  independence  South  Carolina  did 
her  share  of  the  fighting  and  more  than  this.  Besides  fur- 
nishing brilliant  leaders  and  brave  soldiers  for  the  battle- 
field, she  produced  eloquent  orators  and  wise  statesmen  to 
help  manage  the  affairs  of  the  colonists  during  this  trying 
period.  Among  the  foremost  of  her  statesmen  was  Henry 
Laurens.  In  1777  he  succeeded  John  Hancock  as  president 
of  the  continental  congress.  He  proved  himself  an  efficient 
and  wise  officer.  On  his  way  to  seek  aid  from  the  Dutch 
he  was  captured  by  the  British  and  imprisoned  in  the 
Tower  of  London.  At  the  close  of  the  war  he  was  exchanged 
for  Cornwallis.  He  then  went  to  Paris,  where  he  was  one 
of  the  commissioners  who  signed  the  treaty  of  peace  be- 
tween Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 

John  Laurens,  a  son  of  Henry  Laurens,  was  also  promi- 
nent in  the  management  of  the  civil  affairs  of  the  colonists. 
It  was  he  who  secured  aid  from  France.  Never  has  anyone 
been  sent  from  America  to  Europe  on  so  important  mission. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  117 

By  his  tact  and  unusual  abilities  he  succeeded  in  the  task  in 
which  Franklin  had  failed. 

Christopher  Gadsen,  Arthur  Middleton,  William  Henry 
Drayton,  and  David  Ramsey  were  the  great  orators  of 
South  Carolina  during  the  Revolution  period.  At  the  be- 
ginning of  the  war  they  accomplished  much  by  inspiring 
their  fellow-countrymen  with  patriotism  and  courage. 

John  Rutledge,  Charles  Cotesworth  Pinckney  and 
Thomas  Pinckney  had  much  to  do  with  managing  the  affairs 
of  the  province  during  the  war.  The  distinguished  generals, 
Sumter,  Pickens,  Marion  and  Hampton  rendered  valuable 
service  as  statesmen — services  which  are  apt  to  be  over- 
looked on  account  of  these  men  being  such  efficient  partisan 
officers.  The  men  who  signed  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence for  South  Carolina  were  Thomas  Heyward, 
Thomas  Lynch,  Arthur  Middleton  and  Edward  Rutledge. 

South  Carolina's  women  were  as  loyal,  devoted,  and 
heroic  as  her  men.  They  supplied  the  soldiers  with  many 
comforts  by  knitting  and  weaving  garments  for  them.  In 
some  instances  they  took  an  active  part  in  the  struggle. 
Mrs.  Thomas  and  Mrs.  Dillard  made  perilous  rides  to  warn 
the  patriots  of  impending  attacks  of  the  enemy.  "We  will 
long  remember  the  patriotic  spirit  and  self-sacrifice  ex- 
hibited by  Mrs.  Motte  when  she  showed  the  Americans  how 
to  set  fire  to  her  own  house  in  which  the  British  were 
fortified.  Mrs.  Bratton  nursed  some  wounded  British  sol- 
diers who  had  threatened  to  kill  her  the  day  before.  Our 
state  has  sufficient  cause  to  be  proud  of  her  noble  women 
of  the  Revolution. 

The  difficulties  under  which  South  Carolina  labored 
throughout  the  long  struggle  only  add  to  her  glory  and 
honor.  Next  to  Georgia  she  was  the  feeblest  of  the  colonies. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  war  she  had  only  ten  thousand 
available  men.  There  were  heavy  drains  upon  her  limited 
resources.  Much  of  the  ammunition  used  during  the  war 
was  captured  from  the  British.  Reaping  hooks  and  mowing 
scythes  were  used  for  weapons  when  the  supply  of  guns  was 


118  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

inadequate.  Saws  were  taken  from  sawmills  to  be  made 
into  swords.  Lead  was  removed  from  the  housetops  and 
churches  to  be  run  into  bullets.  The  soldiers  had  not  half 
enough  tents,  camp  kettles,  and  canteens.  Clothes,  food 
and  medicines  were  often  lacking.  Added  to  all  this  were 
the  strifes  created  by  the  insurgent  Royalists  and  Indians. 
When  we  view  the  remarkable  successes  of  the  South  Caro- 
linians in  the  light  of  all  these  conditions,  we  can  but  agree 
with  the  great  historian  Bancroft  in  his  opinion  that  "the 
sons  of  South  Carolina  suffered  more,  dared  more  and 
achieved  more  than  the  men  of  any  other  state." 


LYMAN  HALL. 

Lyman  Hall,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  was  born  in  Wallingford,  Conn.,  April  12, 
1724.  He  was  the  son  of  Hon.  John  Hall  and  Mary  Street. 
In  1747  Lyman  Hall  was  graduated  from  Yale  College  in  a 
class  of  twenty-eight  members.  He  then  studied  Theology. 

In  the  twenty-eighth  year  of  his  age  he  moved  to  Dor- 
chester, S.  C.,  and  for  many  years  ministered  to  the  needs 
of  those  sturdy  people. 

Many  of  these  settlers  removed  to  Liberty  County, 
Georgia.  Along  with  the  second  stream  of  immigration 
came  Lyman  Hall. 

When  the  storm  of  the  Revolution  began  to  lower,  Dr. 
Hall  promptly  took  sides  with  the  patriots  and  to  them  he 
was  a  tower  of  strength.  Dr.  Hall  was  chariman  of  the 
meeting  at  Midway,  February  9th,  1775,  which  sent  dele- 
gates to  the  meeting  at  Charleston.  He  was  elected  to  rep- 
resent the  people  of  St.  John's  Parish  in  the  Continental 
Congress,  March  21,  1775. 

When  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  signed, 
Lyman  Hall,  Button  Gwinnett  and  George  Walton,  in  be- 
half of  the  inhabitants  of  Georgia,  affixed  their  names  to 
the  famous  document. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  119 

When  the  British  troops  overran  Georgia,  the  property 
of  those  who  had  espoused  the  patriot  cause  was  confiscated 
and  destroyed,  and  Dr.  Hall's  residence  at  Sunbury  and 
his  plantation  near  Midway  were  despoiled.  With  his  fam- 
ily he  removed  to  the  North  where  he  resided  till  1782, 
when  he  returned  to  Georgia  and  settled  in  Savannah. 

In  1783  Dr.  Hall  was  elected  Governor  of  Georgia  and 
his  administration  was  one  of  the  most  important  in  the 
history  of  the  State.  After  the  expiration  of  his  term  of 
office  as  Governor,  he  returned  to  Savannah  and  again  took 
up  the  practice  of  medicine.  He  removed  to  Burke  County 
in  1790  and  settled  upon  a  fine  plantation  near  Shell  Bluff. 
Here  he  died,  October  19,  1790,  at  the  age  of  sixty-seven, 
and  was  buried  in  a  brick  vault  on  a  bold  bluff  overlooking 
the  river. 

In  1848  his  remains  were  removed  to  Augusta  and 
placed  with  those  of  George  Walton  beneath  the  monument 
erected  by  patriotic  citizens  in  front  of  the  Court  House. 

In  person,  Dr.  Hall  was  six  feet  tall  and  finely  propor- 
tioned. He  was  a  man  of  great  courage  and  discretion,  and 
withal  gentle  and  easy  in  manner. 

He  was  fitted  to  guide  the  ship  of  State  in  the  storm  of 
the  Revolution,  and  though  he  never  bore  arms,  or  won  dis- 
tinction as  an  orator,  the  people  felt  safe  with  his  hand  at 
the  helm.  The  State  of  Georgia  has  fittingly  perpetuated 
his  memory  by  naming  one  of  its  counties  for  him,  and,  so 
long  as  liberty  and  patriotism  shall  live,  so  long  shall  the 
name  of  Lyman  Hall  be  remembered. — Compiled  from 
"Men  of  Mark  of  Georgia." 


120  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


A  ROMANCE  OF  REVOLUTIONARY  TIMES. 

About  1768,  the  only  son  of  Sir  John  Stirling,  of  Scot- 
land, was  sent  to  one  of  the  West  India  Islands  to  look  after 
some  property.  If  he  needed  money  he  was  to  write  home 
for  it,  putting  a  private  mark  on  his  letters.  A  serious 
illness  caused  him  to  forget  the  private  mark,  so  no  atten- 
tion was  paid  to  his  letters  with  request  for  money.  So  he 
found  himself  stranded  among  strangers  without  money 
and  without  health. 

A  kindly  sea  captain,  whom  he  met,  offered  to  take  him 
in  his  vessel  to  Connecticut  without  money.  He  gladly 
accepted  the  offer  and  sailed  for  a  more  healthful  climate. 
Shortly  after  he  left  the  West  Indies,  letters  were  received 
there  from  his  father  inquiring  for  him.  The  answer  was 
sent  to  the  father  that  his  son  had  been  very  ill,  and  as  he 
had  disappeared  they  supposed  he  was  dead.  In  the  mean- 
time young  Stirling  had  gone  to  Stratford,  Connecticut, 
where  he  taught  school  as  a  means  of  support.  He  soon 
fell  in  love  with  one  of  his  pupils,  pretty  Glorianna  Folsom, 
the  beauty  and  belle  of  the  village.  Her  father  was  a  pros- 
perous farmer.  They  were  married  in  1772.  After  the 
birth  of  their  first  child,  a  young  minister,  who  was  going 
to  Scotland  to  be  ordained,  offered  to  hunt  up  his  family 
if  he  would  give  him  the  necessary  proofs  of  his  identity. 
He  did  so,  though  reluctantly  and  hopelessly.  The  minister 
sailed  for  Scotland  and  soon  found  the  family  who  were  in 
deep  mourning  for  the  son  they  had  supposed  dead.  They 
were  overjoyed  to  hear  he  was  alive,  and  at  once  wrote  him 
to  come  home  by  the  first  vessel,  not  waiting  for  his  wife 
and  child  to  get  ready ;  that  they  would  send  for  them  later. 
He  did  so,  and  his  sudden  departure  caused  the  gossips  to 
decide  that  Glorianna  and  her  little  daughters  (for  the 
second  one  was  born  after  he  left)  had  been  deserted.  It 
may  have  seemed  a  long  period,  but  after  he  had  had  time 
to  prepare  a  home  for  her  and  a  quantity  of  beautiful 
clothing,  he  sent  a  ship  to  New  York  for  her  and  she  was 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  121 

requested  to  embark  immediately.  She  found  everything 
provided  for  her  comfort  and  convenience  and  a  servant 
to  wait  on  her.  They  lived  near  Stirling  Castle  and  after- 
wards in  Edinborough  and  young  Stirling  succeeded  to  the 
honors  and  estates  of  the  Baronet  in  due  time. 

Glorianna  was  a  woman  of  remarkable  character  as  well 
as  beauty,  and  was  the  mother  of  eighteen  children. — 
Grace  Martin,  Piedmont  Continental  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


"FT.   MOTTE." 

"As  unto  the  bow  the  cord  is, 
So  unto  the  man  is  woman, 
Tho'  she  bends  him  she  obeys  him, 
Tho'  she  draws  him,  yet  she  follows, 
Useless  each  without  the  other." 

We  have  in  our  county  of  Orangeburg  an  historic  spot 
which  rightly  in  name  is  a  monument  to  the  self-sacrifice 
and  heroism  of  Mrs.  Rebecca  Motte,  the  wife  of  Col.  Isaac 
Motte. 

This  family  had  moved  from  Charleston  to  St.  Matthew 's 
Parish  and  owned  a  beautiful  plantation  home  on  the  Con- 
garee  river,  about  where  the  present  town  of  Fort  Motte 
stands. 

As  Nathaniel  Greene,  aided  by  the  partisan  leaders, 
drove  the  British  from  post  to  post  back  into  Charleston, 
the  British  fortified  Motte 's,  the  chief  part  of  the  post 
being  Mrs.  Rebecca  Motte 's  home.  The  family  had  been 
driven  out  by  the  British  and  were  living  in  the  neighbor- 
hood. 

Lee's  and  Marion's  men  built  a  mound  of  earth,  which 
is  still  to  be  seen,  from  which  the  riflemen  could  command 
the  inside  of  the  fort,  but  the  house  protected  the  enemy 
still.  It  was  found  necessary  to  burn  it. 

They  informed  Mrs.  Motte  that  they  would  probably 
have  to  burn  her  home,  which  stood  in  the  center  of  the 


122  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

fort;  she  begged  them  that  they  would  not  consider  her 
house  of  any  consequence  in  the  general  cause  and  with 
great  patriotism  and  firmness  presented  them  with  a  bow 
and  quiver  of  arrows  and  showing  them  how  to  set  fire  to 
the  house,  requested  that  they  should  burn  it  quickly. 

By  this  means  the  "Whigs  threw  fire  on  the  roof,  com- 
pelling the  garrison  commanded  by  Lieutenant  McPherson 
to  surrender  or  be  roasted.  Mrs.  Motte  was  extremely 
rejoiced  when  she  saw  the  garrison  surrender. 

Lee 's  and  Marion 's  men  extinguished  the  flames  and  the 
house  was  afterwards  rebuilt. 

Some  authorities  say  that  the  bow  and  arrows  were  a 
present  sent  Mrs.  Motte  from  India,  others  that  they  were 
borrowed  of  a  negro  boy.  However  this  may  be  the  mound 
of  earth  is  all  that  is  now  visible  as  a  reminder  of  Mrs. 
Motte 's  sacrifice. 

The  place  where  the  house  stood  is  at  present  a  cotton 
field  and  owned  by  Mrs.  A.  T.  Darby. 

Time,  the  eradicator,  will  eventually  wipe  out  the  mound 
and  all  that  will  commemorate  this  brave  deed  will  be  the 
name,  "Fort  Motte,"  on  the  written  page. — MRS.  BESSIE 
GOGGANS  OWEN,  Vice-Regent  Moultrie  Chapter,  in  Ameri- 
can Monthly. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  123 

PETER  STROZIER. 

About  the  year  1748,  Peter  Strozier,  the  hero  of  our 
story,  was  born  in  Germany.  We  know  nothing  of  his 
childhood  or  early  life,  but  in  manhood  we  know  him  as 
our  worthy  ancestor  and  find  him  bravely  fighting  for 
American  independence.  He  was  married  to  Margaret 
Dozier  in  his  native  land  and  he,  with  four  brothers,  came 
to  America  about  the  time  of  the  out-break  of  the  Revolu- 
tionary War  and  settled  in  Virginia. 

To  the  call  of  the  country  that  he  had  come  to  share  its 
reverses  as  well  as  its  prosperity,  and  in  the  spirit  of  liberty 
he  was  ready  to  draw  the  sword  when  the  iron  heel  of  op- 
pression was  set  upon  its  cherished  rights. 

During  the  seven  years  of  faithful  service  he  gave  to  his 
country,  his  wife  and  five  children  were  left  alone  in  a 
country  home,  where  their  lives  were  in  constant  danger. 
But  God,  in  His  all  wise  providence  had  sent  into  their 
home  an  orphan  boy  who  was  left  to  care,  as  best  he  could, 
for  the  family.  This  orphan  boy,  whose  name  was  Captain 
Paddy  Carr,  was  reared  by  our  worthy  ancestor,  and  dur- 
ing his  life  his  gratitude  never  waned  for  his  benefactor 
and  benefactress.  In  the  meantime  Captain  Carr  moved 
the  family  to  Georgia  but  found  the  condition  of  affairs 
even  worse  than  in  Virginia.  The  Tories  at  this  time  held 
full  sway  in  Georgia  and  in  no  other  state  were  they  so 
wicked  and  cruel.  The  people  were  divided  into  two 
parties,  the  Tories  and  the  Patriots.  The  Tories  were  those 
who  took  the  oath  of  allegience  to  the  King,  and  those  who 
refused  to  take  the  oath  and  would  rather  suffer  and  fight 
for  American  Independence,  were  called  Patriots.  So  the 
Tories  and  Patriots  hated  each  other  with  a  bitter  hatred. 
While  these  Patriots,  brave  and  liberty  loving  men,  were 
ficrhting  for  their  independence,  the  Tories  were  left  un- 
molested in  their  homes.  The  Patriots  were  forced  to  leave 
their  property  and  helpless  families  to  the  mercy  of  the 
British  and  Tories.  The  Tories  were  far  worse  than  the 
British.  They  formed  themselves  into  companies,  roving 


124  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

over  the  country,  committing  all  kinds  of  outrages ;  robbing 
and  burning  houses,  throwing  old  grayheaded  fathers  and 
grandfathers  into  prison  and  driving  helpless  wives  and 
children  from  their  homes,  showing  mercy  to  no  one  who 
favored  the  American  cause. 

One  venerable  great  grandmother,  Margaret  Strozier, 
fell  a  victim  to  a  band  of  these  Tories,  who  robbed  and 
burned  her  home  and  drove  her  away.  She  walked  with 
five  children  to  South  Carolina.  When  the  young  Patriot, 
Captain  Carr,  heard  of  the  robbery  and  burning,  his  fiery 
blood  boiled  in  his  veins  and  he  swore  vengeance  on  all 
Tories.  Henceforth  he  lost  no  opportunity  to  avenge  the 
wrong  done  to  the  woman  who  was  the  only  mother  God 
had  given  him,  and  to  children  who  were  his  only  brothers 
and  sisters.  Tradition  tells  us  that  at  the  point  of  his  own 
gun,  he  captured  at  one  time  five  Tories  and  held  them 
until  his  Company  came  up,  and  to  them  he  showed  no 
mercy. 

Having  gone  through  the  Revolutionary  War,  which 
closed  in  1782,  Peter  Strozier,  with  his  family,  settled  in 
Wilkes  County,  Georgia.  Tradition  also  tells  us  that  he 
was  a  man  of  noble  traits,  with  great  force  and  dignity  of 
character.  His  last  days  were  passed  under  a  silver-lined 
cloud,  and  in  the  old  county  of  Wilkes  he  lies  buried  today. 
After  his  death,  his  wife,  Margaret  Dozier  Strozier,  who  had 
shared  with  him  the  sufferings  and  hardships  of  the  cruel 
war,  moved  to  Meriwether  County,  Georgia,  with  her  son 
Reuben  Strozier,  and  she  lies  buried  in  the  old  family  grave- 
yard about  four  miles  west  of  Greenville,  Georgia,  near  the 
old  Strozier  homestead. 

We  can  say  by  tradition,  from  generation  to  generation, 
that  there  sleep  today  no  truer,  no  purer,  no  nobler  ones 
than  Peter  and  Margaret  Strozier.  How  we  love  and 
cherish  the  memory  of  our  fore-fathers!  So  will  genera- 
tions, after  generations,  and  may  we  never  tire  in  our 
efforts  to  preserve  the  records  of  the  lives  and  struggles  of 
those  who  fought  and  bled  and  died  for  our  freedom. — 
NANNIE  STROZIER  THRASH. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  125 


INDEPENDENCE  DAY. 

Oh,  happy  Independence  Day, 
We  love  thy  honored  name, 

Dear  happy  Independence  Day 
Is  with  us  once  again. 

Over  a  hundred  years  ago, 
This  day  first  won  its  fame, 

And  tho'  the  long  years  come  and  go, 
"Tis  remembered  just  the  same. 

We  are  a  band  of  people  true, 

We  love  our  native  home, 
Its  environments,  its  skies  of  blue, 

From  it  we'll  never  roam. 

Let  us  forget  the  soldiers  never, 

Who  battle  to  be  free, 
Who  fought  King  George's  army, 

From  far  across  the  sea. 

They  left  their  dear  beloved  home 

To  chase  the  cruel  foe, 
O'er  deserted  battle  fields  to  roam 

Midst  suffering,  pain  and  woe. 

Those  soldiers  now  are  sleeping 

To  chase  the  cruel  foe, 
O'er  deserted  battle  fields  to  roam 

Midst  suffering  pain  and  woe. 

Those  soldiers  now  are  sleeping 
On  plain,  and  hill,  and  shore, 

Their  titles  we  are  keeping, 
But  they'll  be  here  no  more. 

When  wars  wild  note  was  sounded 
When  the  cry  for  freedom  came, 

England's  hosts  had  landed 
To  win  her  glorious  fame. 


126  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Alas,  the  British  finally  knew 
They  could  no  longer  stay, 

They  left  our  brave  and  daring  few 
And  quickly  sailed  away. 

Alas,  those  dreadful  day  are  gone, 
No  one  remains  to  tell, 

Of  struggles  made,  and  burdens  bore, 
For  the  land  we  love  so  well. 

We  love  the  mother  country  yet, 
Her  name  we  still  adore, 

Her  kindness  we  can  ne'r  forget, 
But  we'll  be  bound  no  more. 

Oh,  happy  Independence  Day 
How  dear  to  us  the  name! 

Oh,  happy  Independence  Day 
Is  with  us  once  again. 

— By  Mamie  Crosby. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  127 

SARAH   GILLIAM  WILLIAMSON. 

The  most  remarkable  woman  who  lived  in  Georgia 
during  the  Revolutionary  War,  perhaps,  was  Sarah  Gilliam 
Williamson.  Considering  her  loyalty  to  the  cause  of  the 
colonies,  her  courage  in  managing  the  plantation  and  large 
number  of  negro  slaves  during  the  absence  of  her  husband 
in  the  army,  her  sufferings  at  the  hands  of  the  enemy, 
together  with  the  success  of  her  descendants,  she  stands 
ahead  of  any  of  the  Georgia  women  of  her  day. 

Sarah  Gilliam  was  born  in  Virginia  about  the  year  1735. 
Her  father  was  William  Gilliam,  and  her  mother  Mary 
Jarrett,  the  sister  of  Rev.  Devereau  Jarrett,  the  distin- 
guished Episcopal  minister. 

Sarah  Gilliam  married  Micajah  Williamson,  a  young 
man  of  Scotch-Irish  parentage.  In  1768  the  young  couple 
moved  to  Wilkes  County,  Georgia,  and  settled  on  a  fine 
body  of  land.  It  was  while  living  here  in  peace  and 
abundance,  with  their  growing  family  around  them,  that 
the  difference  between  the  mother  country  and  the  colonies 
began. 

Sarah  Williamson  and  her  husband  both  warmly 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  colonies,  and  when  hostilities 
commenced  a  Georgia  regiment  took  the  field  with  Elijah 
Clarke  as  Colonel,  and  Macajah  Williamson  as  Lieutenant- 
Colonel.  Micajah  Williamson  was  present  in  all  the  con- 
flicts of  this  regiment  and  in  the  battle  of  Kettle  Creek  Col. 
Clarke  gave  him  full  credit  for  his  part  in  winning  the 
victory. 

Many  scenes  of  this  nature  were  enacted  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Sarah  Williamson's  home,  and  this  fearless  woman 
not  only  witnessed  the  conflicts,  but  sometimes  participated 
in  them.  Her  husband  was  twice  wounded  and  to  him  she 
gave  the  care  of  a  devoted  wife,  nursing  him  back  to  health 
and  to  the  service  of  his  country. 

Year  after  year  during  this  long  struggle  Sarah  Wil- 
liamson bravely  assumed  the  part  of  both  the  man  and  the 
woman.  Under  her  excellent  management  the  plantation 


12&  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

was  cultivated,  supplies  were  furnished  the  army,  and 
spinning  wheels  were  kept  busy  making  clothes  for  husband, 
children  and  slaves.  Thus  she  toiled  in  the  face  of  ever- 
present  danger,  threatened  always  with  hostile  Indians, 
cruel  Tories  and  British  soldiers. 

Finally,  one  day  the  dreaded  Tories,  incensed  at  her 
husband's  activity  in  the  cause  of  the  colonies,  made  a  raid 
on  the  home  and  after  taking  all  they  wanted,  destroyed  by 
fire  every  building  on  the  plantation,  and  their  fiendish 
hearts  not  being  yet  satisfied  with  the  suffering  of  this 
loyal  woman,  they  hung  her  eldest  son,  a  handsome  youth, 
in  the  presence  of  his  mother. 

Her  courage  undaunted  by  this  great  calamity,  Sarah 
Williamson  had  the  faithful  slaves  gather  up  the  remaining 
live  stock  running  at  large  in  the  woods,  and  with  her 
entire  household  went  as  a  refugee  to  the  mountains  of 
North  Carolina,  where  they  remained  until  the  close  of  the 
war,  when  they  returned  to  the  plantation. 

A  few  years  later  the  family  moved  to  "Washington, 
Georgia.  Here  again  it  became  necessary  for  her  to  manage 
for  the  family  when  her  husband  was  commissioned 
Major- General  of  Georgia  troops  and  led  an  army  against 
the  hostile  Cherokee  Indians.  Peace  was  made,  however, 
before  a  battle  was  fought. 

Now  Sarah  Williamson  began  to  reap  the  reward  her 
love,  sacrifice,  energy  and  labor  had  won.  Her  five  sons 
grew  to  be  successful  men,  her  six  daughters  to  be  refined, 
educated  and  beautiful  women,  who  became  the  wives  of 
prominent  men.  One  daughter  married  John  Clarke  who 
became  Governor  of  Georgia. 

To  this  Georgia  mother  belongs  the  distinguished  honor 
of  being  the  first  American  woman  to  furnish  from  her 
descendants  two  Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the 
United  States;  Justice  John  A.  Campbell  of  Alabama  was 
her  grandson,  and  Justice  L.  Q.  C.  Lamar  of  Georgia  and 
Mississippi  was  her  great  grandson. — RUBY  FELDER  RAY, 
State  Historian,  D.  A.  R. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  129 


A  COLONIAL  HIDING  PLACE. 

In  sailing  up  the  Hudson  River,  about  one  hundred 
miles  above  New  York,  you  will  discover  on  the  west  side  a 
rather  broad  estuary,  named  by  the  old  Dutch  settlers,  the 
Katterskill  Creek. 

This  creek  flows  through  a  cleft  in  the  mountains,  known 
in  the  quaint  language  of  the  Dutch  as  the  Katterskill 
Clove. 

This  clove,  nature's  pass  through  the  mountains,  was 
well  known,  and  used  by  the  tribes  of  the  Six  Nations,  and 
especially  by  the  vindictive,  and  blood  thirsty  Mohawks,  as 
an  easy  trail  by  which  they  would  descend  upon  the  peace- 
loving  and  thrifty  Dutch  settlers ;  kill  all  the  men  who  had 
not  fled  for  refuge  to  the  strong  stone  houses  which  were 
specially  built  for  defence ;  capture  the  women  and  children, 
and  kill  all  the  live  stock. 

On  the  peninsula  between  the  river  and  the  creek,  the 
latter  being  wide  and  deep  enough  to  float  the  magnificent 
steamers  which  ply  between  Albany  and  New  York,  stood 
the  colonial  mansion  to  which  your  attention  is  called. 

This  mansion,  for  it  was  a  splendid  structure  for  those 
days,  and  the  term  would  not  be  a  misnomer  in  these,  was 
built  in  1763  by  a  Madam  Dies,  a  Dutch  matron,  who  after- 
wards married  an  English  army  officer.  This  man  was  so 
infatuated  with  his  Dutch  "vrow,"  and  her  wealth,  that  he 
deserted  the  colors,  and  would  hide  from  search  parties  in 
the  place  to  be  hereinafter  described. 

The  house  was  built  of  the  gray  sand  stone  found  in 
that  region,  and  was  two  stories  high,  with  a  capacious 
cellar,  and  an  immense  garret.  The  walls  were  nearly  three 
feet  thick,  set  in  cement,  which  became  so  hard  that  when 
the  day  of  destruction  came  a  few  years  ago,  the  workmen 
were  unable  to  tear  the  walls  apart,  but  had  to  blow  them 
down  with  dynamite.  One  hundred  and  fifty  years  had 
that  cement  been  setting,  and  it  was  as  hard  as  the  stone 
itself. 


130  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

In  the  cellar  was  a  well  to  provide  water  in  case  of  siege 
by  the  Indians,  and  heat  was  obtained  by  huge  fire  places 
in  each  of  the  eight  large  rooms,  the  smoke  from  which  was 
carried  off  by  two  giant  chimneys,  and  on  one  of  these 
chimneys  hangs  the  tale  which  is  the  excuse  for  this  article. 

Madam  Dies,  true  to  her  name,  was  gathered  to  her 
fathers,  and  her  craven  husband  went  to  the  place  prepared, 
for  those  who  desert  their  colors. 

Leaving  no  direct  heirs,  the  house  with  its  ten  acres  of 
grounds,  and  known  from  its  elegance  and  size  as  "Dies 
Folly"  passed  into  other  hands,  and  finally,  early  in  the 
nineteenth  century,  was  purchased  by  Major  Ephriam 
Beach,  and  remained  in  the  family  for  nearly  one  hundred 
years,  until  destroyed  by  the  exigencies  of  business. 

The  huge  chimneys  reared  their  massive  proportions 
in  the  center  of  each  side  of  the  house,  and  Major  Beach, 
wishing  to  rearrange  the  interior  of  his  dwelling,  tore 
down  the  one  on  the  north  side.  As  it  was  being  taken 
down,  brick  by  brick,  they  came  to  where  it  passed  through 
the  garret,  and  there  the  workmen  discovered  a  secret 
recess  capable  of  holding  several  people. 

It  was  cunningly  conceived  with  the  entrance  so  ar- 
ranged as  to  exactly  resemble  the  brick  composing  the 
chimney,  and  an  enemy  might  hunt  for  days  and  fail  to 
discover  the  secret  hiding  place.  It  was  evidently  intended 
as  a  concealed  refuge  in  case  the  house  should  be  captured 
by  the  Indians,  but  so  far  as  known  was  never  used  for 
that  purpose,  the  village  never  being  attacked  after  the 
house  was  built.  Some  dishes  and  a  water  jar  which  were 
found  in  the  hidden  chamber,  served  to  prove  that  the 
husband  of  Madam  Dies  used  it  to  conceal  himself  from  the 
British  soldiers  when  they  were  hunting  him,  but  apart 
from  that  undignified  proceeding  it  was  never  used. 

The  house  was  well  known  to  be  haunted,  and  there 
are  many  well  authenticated  ghost  stories  told  in  connec- 
tion with  it ;  but  the  spooks  were  a  decent  and  well  behaved 


THE    OLD    LIBKKTY    BELL. 

"Proclaim    liberty    throughout    all    the    land,    unto    all 
the    inhabitants    thereof." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  131 

lot,  and  never  disturbed  the  writer,  who  spent  many  years 
within  its  substantial  walls. 

The  daughter  of  the  writer  was  the  last  of  my  children 
born  therein,  and  she  never  saw  even  a  fairy  Godmother, 
although  both  of  her  grandmothers  hovered  around  her 
cradle. 

The  writer,  Edward  Cunningham  Beach,  is  a  grandson  of 
Major  Ephriam  Beach,  herein  mentioned  and  the  baby  daughter 
in  aforesaid  is  Mrs.  Barrett  Cothran,  of  Atlanta,  Georgia. — 
Council  Safety  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


A  HERO  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 

The  descendants  of  Grace  (Pittman)  Me  Arthur  still  tell 
to  their  children  the  story  of  Philip  Pittman,  her  father, 
as  it  has  been  handed  down  from  father  to  son. 

Philip  was  born  July  7,  1765.  He  was  one  of  eleven 
children  of  John  and  Mary  Pittman.  His  father  served  in 
the  Revolution,  as  Matross  in  Capt.  Harman  Davis'  Com- 
pany, 4th  Artillery  Regiment  of  South  Carolina,  com- 
manded by  Col.  Barnard  Beckman. 

Though  too  young,  probably,  to  enlist,  the  revolutionary 
fires  burned  so  brightly  in  the  young  patriots  breast  that  he 
was  ready  to  give  his  life  to  his  country  even  though  he 
might  not  carry  sabre  or  musket. 

As  the  story  goes,  Philip  was  overtaken  by  Tories  at* 
one  time  while  he  was  making  his  way  over  the  country 
with  provisions  for  his  father  John  and  some  comrades. 

Thinking  this  an  easy  way  to  find  out  the  whereabouts 
of  the  Patriot  army  the  Tories  commanded  the  boy  to  tell 
where  his  father  was,  but  they  reckoned  without  their  host. 

The  boy  stoutly  refused  to  tell,  and  even  though  strung 
up  and  hung  to  a  near  by  limb  until  almost  too  near  dead 
to  talk,  he  still  refused.  Whereupon  the  officer,  moved 
perhaps  by  the  extreme  youth  of  the  boy,  ripped  out  an 

oath  and  ordered  him  cut  down,  remarking  that  the  

rascal  would  die  before  he  would  tell. 


132  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

Philip  did  not  die,  but  lived  to  grow  to  manhood, 
enlisted  in  the  war  and  served  as  one  of  Georgia's  soldiers 
line  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 

He  was  three  times  married,  raised  a  large  family  of 
children  whose  allegiance  to  their  country  was  only  equaled 
by  that  of  their  father.  Philip  died  in  south-west  Georgia, 
July  14,  1849.— MRS.  J.  D.  TWEEDY,  (Lula  McArthur), 
Dawson,  Ga.,  Dorothy  Walton  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


JOHN  PAUL  JONES. 

What  American  or  French  girl  or  boy  does  not  like  to 
hear  of  that ' '  wizard ' '  of  the  sea, — John  Paul  Jones !  That 
"Pirate,"  as  he  was  called  by  the  English  minister  in  Hol- 
land, when  Jones  took  his  captured  psizes  there,  but  he 
was  no  more  a  Pirate  than  you  or  I.  The  word  Pirate 
means  one  who  is  at  war  with  mankind,  and  John  Paul 
was  holding  an  honest  position  in  an  honorable  service  and 
fighting  only  the  enemies  of  his  adopted  country — America. 

He  was  born  July  6th,  1747,  at  Arbigland,  Scotland,  of 
poor  and  obscure  parents,  his  father  being  a  gardener,  but 
the  right  material  was  in  him  to  make  a  great  man  and  he 
won  for  himself  a  world-wide  fame  as  a  leading  figure  in 
the  American  Navy.  The  only  conquerer  to  whom  he  ever 
lowered  his  colors  was  death. 

At  twelve  years  of  age  he  was  apprenticed,  then  went 
to  sea  on  the  "Friendship"  to  visit  his  brother  William 
Paul,  in  Virginia.  While  in  North  Carolina,  in  1773,  he 
changed  his  surname  to  Jones  for  the  love  he  bore  to  a 
family  of  that  name  living  there.  To  show  what  one  can 
do  when  he  tries  and  has  faith  in  himself,  I  will  tell  you 
that  Jones  was  a  poor  sailor  at  twelve,  officer  at  seventeen, 
Naval  Lieutenant  at  twenty-eight,  Captain  at  twenty-nine, 
Commodore  at  thirty-two,  at  forty-one  a  Vice-Admiral  in 
the  Imperial  Navy  of  Russia,  at  forty-three  a  prominent 
figure  in  the  French  Revolution,  and  died  at  the  age  of 


133 

forty-five,  deeply  deplored  by  Napoleon,  who  expected  to 
do  great  things  in  conjunction  with  him. 

Jones  loved  France  and  France  loved  him,  and  with 
him  and  France  we  were  able  to  gain  our  liberty  from  the 
British  yoke.  He  loved  America  because  he  loved  liberty, 
and  he  put  all  his  grand  titles  aside  when  making  his  last 
will  and  testament  to  sign  himself,  ' '  I,  John  Paul  Jones,  an 
American  citizen."  Such  men  as  Washington,  Franklin, 
Hamilton  and  LaFayette,  were  his  staunch  friends.  Kings 
and  Queens  delighted  to  do  him  favor.  Louis  XVI 
knighted  him  and  presented  him  with  a  sword  of  honor. 
Catherine,  of  Russia,  made  him  an  Admiral  and  loaded  him 
with  honors.  These  are  only  a  few  of  his  distinguished 
friends. 

In  personal  appearance  he  was  slender  and  swarthy, 
with  black  hair  and  eyes ;  always  well  dressed,  graceful  and 
courtly.  He  was  as  much  at  home  at  the  most  aristocratic 
courts  of  Europe  as  when  treading  the  deck  of  a  man-of- 
war.  He  was  grave  by  nature,  but  quite  witty. 

A  kinder  heart  never  beat  in  the  breast  of  any  man. 

He  hoisted  the  first  American  Flag  that  ever  flew  from 
an  American  war  vessel,  on  his  ship,  the  ' '  Ranger, ' '  and  at 
the  same  time  Congress  decided  to  accept  the  present  form 
of  the  flag,  it  made  him  Captain  of  the  "Ranger,"  hence 
his  remark:  "The  flag  and  I  are  twins;  born  at  the  same 
hour,  from  the  same  womb  of  destiny ;  we  cannot  be  parted 
in  life  or  death." 

February  14th,  1778,  the  French  naval  commander,  Lea 
Motte  Piquet,  saluted  for  the  first  time  from  a  foreign 
power  the  Stars  and  Stripes, — gave  thirteen  and  received 
nine  guns. 

Just  a  word  right  here  about  the  flag,  so  dear  to  us: 

When  Betsy  Ross  made  our  flag,  she  objected  to  the 
six  pointed  stars  that  General  Washington  wanted,  because 
the  English  used  it,  but  told  him  it  would  be  more  ap- 
propriate to  use  the  five  pointed  star  that  the  French  and 


134  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Dutch  used,  as  they  were  friendly  to  the  colonies ;  and  she 
had  her  way. 

I  have'nt  space  to  tell  of  the  many  victories  of  Jones, 
but  one  of  the  greatest  was  when  he  captured  the  ' '  Serapis ' ' 
from  the  British,  September  23,  1779.  His  own  little  weak; 
vessel,  the  "Bonhomme  Richard"  went  down  with  the  flag 
flying,  but  just  before  it  sank,  his  antagonist  thought  he 
was  about  to  give  up  the  fight,  and  asked  him  "if  he  had 
struck  his  flag  ? ' '  He  answered,  ' '  I  've  just  begun  to  fight. ' ' 
So  he  won  the  battle  and  captured  the  prize. 

Jones  died  July  18,  1792,  in  Paris,  of  dropsy  of  the 
chest.  He  was  buried  in  the  old  St.  Louis  cemetery,  in  the 
northeastern  part  of  Paris,  and  lay  there  one  hundred  and 
thirteen  years  before  he  was  brought  back  to  the  United 
States.  General  Horace  Porter  is  the  man  who,  after  six 
long  years  of  search,  finally  found  his  body  in  the  old 
cemetery,  which  by  this  time  was  the  dumping  ground  for 
horses  and  dogs. 

The  body  had  been  put  in  a  leaden  coffin,  carefully 
packed  with  straw  and  hay,  and  then  filled  with  alcohol  to 
preserve  it.  Rear  Admiral  C.  D.  Sigsbee,  was  sent  to 
France  to  bring  the  remains  of  the  hero  home. 

Knowing  Jones'  love  for  our  flag,  the  Daughters  of  the 
American  Revolution  Society  presented  Admiral  Sigsbee 
with  a  beautiful  silk  flag,  June  15th,  1905,  to  be  used  in 
connection  with  the  return  of  Jones'  remains.  Afterward 
it  was  hung  in  Continental  Hall,  Washington,  D.  C. 

On  July  25,  1915,  the  body  of  Jones  was  placed  in  a 
brick  vault,  Naval  Academy  grounds,  Annapolis,  with 
religious  and  military  ceremonies.  On  April  29,  1906, 
commemorative  ceremonies  were  held  in  the  Armory  of  the 
Naval  Academy,  Annapolis,  and  then  the  casket  was  put  in 
Bancroft  Hall.  Here  all  that  is  mortal  of  the  conquerer  of 
the  "Serapis"  lies,  and  in  the  battles  of  life  when  the  odds 
seem  against  us,  may  we  be  able  to  exclaim  with  him,  "I've 
just  begun  to  fight." — MRS.  W.  E.  WIMPY,  Piedmont  Con- 
tinental Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  135 


THE  REAL  GEORGIA  CRACKER. 

There  was  a  man  named  Oglethorpe, 
Who  didn't  like  old  England's  laws; 

So  he  got  into  his  little  ship, 
And  sailed  it  straight  across. 

He  swung  around  Carolina's  point 

And  landed  at  a  Bluff; 
And  when  he  found  the  soil  so  rich, 

He  said — "tis  good  enough." 

He  named  the  place  Savannah, 

And  then  laid  off  a  town, 
You  ought  to  seed  the  taters, 
That  grew  thar  in  the  ground. 

He  planted  cotton,  rice  and  corn, 

And  then  a  patch  of  backer: 
That  was  the  first  beginning, 

Of  the  Real  Georgia  Cracker. 

Then  he  got  some  mules  and  plows, 

And  sat  the  boys  to  hoeing; 
Ever  since  they  stirred  the  soil, 

The  Georgia  Cracker  has  been  growing. 

But  now — where  once  those  taters  grew, 
Mount  twenty  tall  church  steeples; 

And  the  place  he  named  Savannah, 
Dwell  nigh  a  hundred  thousand  people. 

Will  stand  a  living  factor; 
While  angels  guard  it  overhead, 

God  bless  the  Georgia  Cracker. 
In  Chippewa  his  monument, 

Jesup,  Ga.  — L.  G.  Lucas. 


136  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


THE  DYING  SOLDIER  WHO  GAVE  HIS  WIFE 
FOR  HIS  FRIEND. 

Many  years  ago  there  lived  in  Virginia  a  little  boy  whose 
name  was  John  Davenport.  His  father  was  a  farmer  who 
planted  and  raised  large  crops  of  tobacco  in  the  fields  about 
his  home.  His  parents  were  good  and  wise  people,  and 
carefully  brought  up  and  trained  their  children.  John  was 
a  good  boy.  He  was  honest,  truthful,  obedient,  bold  and 
strong.  If  he  had  any  thing  to  do,  either  in  work  or  play, 
he  did  it  well.  He  grew  up  like  other  boys  of  his  day.  He 
went  to  school  and  made  many  friends  among  his  play- 
mates by  his  manly  conduct. 

There  lived  in  the  same  county  in  Virginia  another 
little  boy  of  strong  and  sterling  character  whose  name  was 
Harry  Burnley.  These  two  little  boys  were  near  neighbors 
and  great  friends,  and  they  played  and  hunted  and  fished 
together  all  during  their  early  boyhood  days. 

When  John  Davenport  was  quite  a  young  man  he  met 
and  married  Lucy  Barksdale,  a  girl  of  great  merit  and 
beauty  who  was  just  sixteen  years  old  at  the  time  of  their 
marriage  in  1772. 

This  couple  spent  many  happy  days  together ;  children 
came  to  gladden  their  home ;  and  life  looked  rosy  and  bright 
before  them.  As  these  peaceful  and  happy  days  were  glid- 
ing by  in  their  Virginia  home  a  tempest  was  gathering — a 
great  war  cloud — which  was  destined  to  bring  much  sorrow 
to  this  happy  pair. 

England,  the  mother  country,  who  at  first  dealt  kindly 
and  justly  with  the  colonists,  had  begun  to  be  unkind  to 
them  and  to  tax  them  unjustly.  These  oppressive  and 
burdensome  taxes  the  colonists  refused  to  pay.  England 
sent  over  trained  soldiers  to  the  American  colonies  to  en- 
force obedience  to  her  unjust  laws.  The  colonists  were 
weak,  and  had  no  trained  soldiers ;  but  they  raised  an  army 
and  determined  to  fight  for  their  liberties.  So  war  began. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  137 

After  the  Declaration  of  Independence  by  the  patriots 
on  July  4th,  1776,  John  Davenport,  ever  true  to  his  country 
and  his  convictions  of  right  and  wrong,  though  regretting 
to  leave  his  beautiful  young  wife  and  his  happy  children, 
took  up  arms  to  fight  for  liberty.  Harry  Burnley  went 
with  him  to  fight  for  the  same  noble  cause.  They  were  both 
brave  soldiers  and  fought  in  most  of  the  prominent  battles 
of  the  Revolutionary  war.  They  were  mess-mates  and 
bunk-mates  throughout  the  war. 

On  the  night  of  March  14th,  1781,  while  the  two  oppos-- 
ing  armies  were  encamped  near  Greensboro,  at  Guilford 
Court  House,  North  Carolina,  and  stood  ready  to  join  in 
bloody  battle  the  next  day,  these  two  devoted  friends  were 
sitting  by  their  camp  fire,  talking  of  the  coming  battle  and 
thinking  of  their  loved  ones  at  home.  John  Davenport 
seemed  sad  and  much  depressed.  Harry  Burnley  noticed 
his  depression  and  asked  him  why  he  was  no  downcast.  He 
said,  "  Harry,  somehow  I  feel  that  I  will  be  killed  in  battle 
tomorrow.  I  almost  know  it."  Harry  Burnley  tried  to 
dissipate  his  gloomy  forebodings  and  cheer  him  up,  by 
laughing  at  him  and  by  making  light  of  presentiments  and 
by  tusseling  with  him,  but  all  without  success.  Determined 
to  cheer  up  his  friend,  Harry  finally  said,  "John,  if  you 
are  killed  tomorrow,  I  am  going  back  home  and  marry  your 
widow, ' '  Harry  being  an  unmarried  man. 

On  the  next  day  the  cruel  battle  was  fought.  The 
ground  was  covered  with  dead  and  dying  men,  soldiers  on 
both  sides,  covered  with  blood  and  dust.  One  of  these 
soldiers  was  John  Davenport.  He  had  been  wounded  and 
would  die ;  and  he  was  suffering  from  both  pain  and  thirst. 
When  the  battle  was  over,  his  devoted  friend  hurried  to  his 
side  and  found  him  mortally  wounded.  "When  he  found 
him,  skulkers  were  stripping  him  of  the  silver  buckles  which 
he  wore.* 


*  These  skulkers  in  their  hurry  to  get  away  left  five  silver 
buckles  and  epaulettes  which  were  exhibited  at  the  Exposition 
in  New  Orleans  some  years  ago. 


138  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

He  was  tenderly  nursed  by  his  life-long  friend  during 
the  few  hours  that  he  lived.  Realizing  that  the  end  was 
near,  John  Davenport  said  to  his  friend,  ''Harry,  I  am 
dying ;  and  you  remember  last  night  you  said  to  me  in  jest 
that  if  I  lost  my  life  today,  that  you  were  going  home  and 
marry  Lucy.  You  have  been  my  best  friend,  you  are  a 
noble  and  good  man,  and  I  now  ask  you  in  earnest  to  do  as 
you  said  you  would  in  jest — go  back  home  after  the  war  is 
over,  marry  my  wife,  and  take  care  of  her  and  my  five  little 
children. ' ' 

About  one  year  after  the  death  of  John  Davenport, 
Harry  Burnley  and  Mrs.  Lucy  Davenport  were  married. 
Several  years  later  they  moved  to  Warren  County,  Georgia, 
where  they  lived  and  died  and  were  buried.  Mrs.  Lucy 
Davenport  Burnley  was  the  mother  of  fourteen  children, 
five  by  her  first  marriage  and  nine  by  her  second.  Among 
her  descendants  are  to  be  found  very  many  noble  men  and 
women  in  America — distinguished  as  writers,  lawyers  and 
educators,  and  in  every  walk  of  life.  Many  of  her  sons 
and  grandsons  have  sacrificed  their  lives  for  their  country. 
— MRS.  ANNIE  DAVIDSON  HOWELL. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  139 


WHEN  BEN  FRANKLIN  SCORED. 

Long  after  the  victories  of  Washington  over  the  French 
and  the  English  had  made  his  name  familiar  to  all  Europe, 
Benjamin  Franklin  was  a  guest  at  a  dinner  given  in  honor 
of  the  French  and  English  Ambassadors.  The  Ambassador 
from  England  arose  and  drank  a  toast  to  his  native  land : 
"To  England — the  sun  whose  bright  beams  enlighten  and 
fructify  the  remotest  corners  of  the  earth.' 

The  French  Ambassador,  filled  with  his  own  national 
pride,  but  too  polite  to  dispute  the  previous  toast,  offered 
the  following:  "To  France — the  moon  whose  mild,  steady, 
and  cheering  rays  are  the  delight  of  all  nations,  consoling 
them  in  darkness  and  making  their  dreariness  beautiful. ' ' 

Then  arose  "Old  Ben  Franklin,"  and  said  in  his  slow 
but  dignified  way:  "To  George  Washington — the  Joshua 
who  commanded  the  sun  and  the  moon  to  stand  still,  and 
they  obeyed  him." 


A  REVOLUTIONARY  BAPTIZING. 

After  the  cold  winter  at  Valley  Forge,  Captain  Charles 
Cameron  was  sent  home  to  Augusta  County,  Virginia,  to 
recruit  his  Company.  On  his  way  back  to  the  Continental 
Army,  he  and  his  men  captured  a  Tory  on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Potomac  River  and  decided  to  convert  him,  by  baptism, 
into  a  loyal  Patriot.  Taking  him  down  to  the  river  bank 
they  plunged  him  in. 

Once — "Hurrah  for  King  George !"  came  from  the  stru- 
gling  Tory  as  he  arose  from  the  water. 

Twice — "Hurrah  for  King  George!  Long  live  King 
George ! ' '  The  Tory  was  again  on  top. 

Three  times — "Hurrah  for  King  George!  Long  live 
King  George!  King  George  forever!" 

The  men  looked  helplessly  at  their  Captain.  "Loose 
him,"  were  the  orders,  "and  let  him  go.  He  is  uncon- 
vertible." 


140  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


GEORGE  WALTON. 

The  youngest  of  the  three  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  from  Georgia,  was  George  Walton,  who  was 
born  in  Prince  Edward  County,  Virginia,  in  1749.  He  be- 
came an  orphan  when  quite  young  and  his  guardian  did 
not  care  to  be  burdened  with  his  education,  so  he  was  given 
to  a  carpenter  as  an  apprentice  and  put  to  hard  work. 
After  his  days  work  he  would  light  a  fire  of  fat  pine  and 
study  until  the  wee  small  hours  of  the  night,  thus  gaining 
an  education  most  boys  would  let  go  ;by.  The  good 
carpenter,  seeing  him  so  industriously  inclined  and  anxious 
for  an  education,  allowed  him  to  keep  the  money  he  earned 
and  helped  him  all  he  could  and  at  last  relieved  him  of 
his  apprenticeship,  and  he  then  decided  to  come  to  Georgia. 
At  twenty  years  of  age  he  went  (by  private  conveyance)  to 
Savannah,  which  was  then  a  small  town  of  only  a  few 
thousand  people.  He  studied  law  in  the  office  of  Henry 
Young  and  was  soon  admitted  to  the  bar. 

In  June,  1775,  a  call  signed  by  George  Walton,  Noble 
W.  Jones,  Archibald  Bullock  and  John  Houston,  was  issued 
asking  people  to  meet  at  Liberty  Pole  to  take  measures  to 
bring  about  a  union  of  Georgia  with  her  sister  colonies 
in  the  cause  of  freedom.  The  meeting  was  a  success,  a 
council  of  Safety  Chapter  organized,  of  which  George 
Walton  was  a  member,  the  Union  Flag  was  raised  at  the 
Liberty  Pole,  and  patriotic  speeches  were  made. 

In  July,  1775,  a  Congress  of  Representatives  from  all 
over  Georgia  was  held  in  Savannah.  This  Congress  has 
been  called  " Georgia's  first  Secession  Convention"  for  it 
declared  the  colony  was  no  longer  bound  by  the  acts  of 
England,  since  the  mother  country  was  acting  unjustly  and 
oppressively.  George  Walton  was  present  and  though  only 
twenty-six  years  old,  he  was  recognized  as  one  of  the  most 
influential  representatives  of  the  convention. 

In  December,  1775,  George  Walton  became  President  of 
the  Council  of  Safety  and  practically  had  charge  of  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  141 

colony.  He  was  sent  as  a  delegate  to  the  Continental  Con- 
gress in  Philadelphia  in  1776.  The  war  had  begun  and 
the  country  was  much  excited.  It  was  decided  that  Inde- 
pendence was  the  only  proper  course,  so  July  4th,  1776, 
the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  signed  by  all  dele- 
gates. 

In  1777,  George  Walton  married  Dorothy  Chamber; 
1779  he  was  Governor  of  Georgia,  then  he  went  back  to 
Philadelphia  as  a  member  of  Congress,  where  he  stayed 
until  October,  1781.  In  December,  1778,  he  became  Colonel 
in  the  First  Regiment  of  Foot  Militia  for  the  defence  of 
Georgia.  The  British  were  then  bent  on  capturing  Savan- 
nah. Col.  Walton  with  one  hundred  men  was  posted  on  the 
South  Common  to  guard  the  approach  to  Great  Ogeeche 
Ferry.  General  Robert  Howe  was  in  command  of  the 
American  forces,  and  Colonel  Walton  had  informed  him  of 
a  pass  through  the  swamp  by  which  the  enemy  could  attack 
them  in  rear,  but  General  Howe  paid  no  attention  to  this. 
The  result  was  this  pass  being  left  unguarded,  the  British 
made  their  way  to  the  rear  of  the  American  forces  and  fell 
upon  them  with  great  disaster.  Col.  Walton  was  shot  in 
the  thigh,  the  bone  being  broken ;  and  falling  from  his 
horse,  was  captured  by  the  British.  The  enemy  entered 
Savannah  and  held  that  city  captive.  Col.  Walton  was 
taken  prisoner  to  Sunbury,  where  he  was  well  cared  for 
until  his  recovery.  He  never,  however,  regained  complete 
use  of  his  leg,  for  he  limped  the  rest  of  his  life.  He  was 
exchanged  for  a  Captain  of  the  British  Navy  and 
proceeded  to  Augusta.  Soon  after  his  return  to  Augusta 
he  was  made  Governor  of  Georgia,  but  the  state  being  so 
over-run  by  British,  he  had  little  to  do. 

Peace  came  to  the  colonists  in  1782,  and  the  British 
withdrew  from  Savannah.  America  was  free  and  the 
states  independent  in  1783.  George  Walton  was  made 
Chief  Justice  of  Georgia,  and  for  seven  years  was  a  beloved 
judge  in  all  parts  of  Georgia.  In  1789  he  was  again  made 
Governor  of  Georgia  for  a  term  of  one  year.  While  he 


142  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

was  governor  he  received  a  copy  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States  which  had  been  framed  by  the  delegates  from 
all  the  states. 

In  1795  and  1796,  George  Walton  was  sent  as  a  Senator 
to  the  Congress  of  the  United  States.  For  many  years, 
and  up  to  the  time  of  his  death  he  was  judge  of  the  middle 
circuit  of  Georgia.  During  the  latter  part  of  his  life,  his 
home  was  near  Augusta  at  a  beautiful  country  place  named 
Meadow  Garden.  The  house  is  still  standing,  and  was 
bought  by  the  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution,  and 
is  being  preserved  by  them  as  a  memorial  to  George  Walton. 
He  died  February  2nd,  1804,  at  Meadow  Garden,  in  the 
fifty-fifth  year  of  his  life.  He  was  buried  several  miles 
from  Augusta,  at  Rosney,  here  his  body  rested  until  1848, 
when  it  was  reinterred,  being  brought  to  Augusta  and 
placed  under  the  monument  on  Greene  Street,  in  front  of 
court  house,  the  body  of  Lyman  Hall  being  placed  there  at 
the  same  time.  The  grave  of  Button  Gwinnett  could  not  be 
found;  so  only  two  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  rest 
under  this  stately  memorial. 

Few  men  have  received  as  many  honors  as  George 
Walton.  He  was  six  times  elected  representative  to  Con- 
gress, twice  Governor  of  Georgia,  once  a  Senator  of  the 
United  States,  four  times  Judge  of  the  Superior  Court, 
once  the  Chief  Justice  of  the  state.  He  was  a  Commissioner 
to  treat  with  the  Indians,  often  in  the  State  Legislature, 
a  member  of  nearly  every  important  committee  on  public 
affairs  during  his  life.  His  name  occurs  in  the  State's 
Annals  for  over  thirty  years  of  eventful  and  formative 
history. — Compiled  from  "Men  of  Mark  of  Georgia." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  143 


THOMAS  JEFFERSON. 

In  writing  of  a  man  like  Jefferson,  whose  name  has  been 
a  household  word  since  the  birth  of  the  Nation,  it  is  well- 
nigh  impossible  to  avoid  being  commonplace ;  so  that  in  the 
beginning,  I  ask  you  indulgence,  if  in  reviewing  his  life, 
I  should  recount  facts  that  are  as  familiar  to  you  as  the 
Decalogue. 

Yet,  in  studying  that  life,  I  find  such  a  richness  of 
achievement,  such  an  abundance  of  attainment,  such  a 
world  of  interest,  that  I  am  at  a  loss  how  to  prepare  a  paper 
that  will  not  require  an  extra  session  for  its  reading. 

Thomas  Jefferson  was  the  eldest  child  of  a  seemingly 
strange  union ;  the  father,  an  uneducated  pioneer,  surveyor, 
and  Indian  fighter,  living  in  the  mountains  of  Virginia — 
the  mother,  Jane  Randolph,  coming  from  the  best  blood  of 
that  blue  blooded  commonwealth.  I  think  we  need  dig  no 
further  around  Jefferson's  family  tree  in  order  to  under- 
stand how  a  gentleman  of  education,  culture,  and  aristo- 
cratic instincts  could  affect  a  dress  so  different  from  men 
of  his  class,  and  could  so  deeply  and  sincerely  love  the 
masses  as  to  spend  his  life  in  their  behalf.  And  this  he 
certainly  did.  He  worked,  thought,  planned,  and  accom- 
plished for  them — yet,  throughout  his  life,  his  associations 
were  always  with  the  upper  classes. 

He  began  life  in  1743,  in  the  small  village  of  Shadwell, 
Va.,  where  he  spent  his  childhood  and  youth  among  the 
freedom  of  the  hills.  Afterwards,  whenever  he  escaped 
from  public  duty,  it  was  to  retire  to  this  same  neighborhood, 
for  it  was  on  one  of  his  ancestral  hills  that  Monticello  was 
built. 

Thanks  to  his  mother,  he  was  carefully  educated  at  Wil- 
liam and  Mary  College,  from  which  he  graduated  at  the 
age  of  eighteen.  The  Brittanica  draws  the  following  picture 
of  him  as  a  young  man: 

"He  was  an  expert  musician,  a  good  dancer,  a  dashing 
rider,  proficient  in  all  manly  exercises;  a  hard  student; 


144  BEVOLUTIONARY  READER 

tall,  straight,  slim,  with  hazel  eyes,  sandy  hair,  delicate 
skin,  ruddy  complexion;  frank,  earnest,  sympathetic, 
cordial,  full  of  confidence  in  men,  and  sanguine  in  his 
views  of  life. ' '  Is  not  that  a  pleasing  portrait  ? 

Being  the  eldest  son,  his  father's  death,  while  he  was 
at  college,  left  him  heir  to  his  estate  of  nineteen  hundred 
acres,  so  that  he  could  live  very  comfortably.  Jefferson 
lived  in  a  day  when  a  man's  wealth  was  measured  in  great 
part  by  the  land  he  owned.  It  is  indicative  of  his  thrift  and 
energy  that  his  nineteen  hundred  acres  soon  grew  to  five 
thousand — "all  paid  for,"  we  are  told.  Indeed,  he  was 
strictly  honest  in  paying  his  debts. 

He  was  a  born  farmer,  and  to  the  end  of  his  life  retained 
his  love  for  that  mode  of  existence. 

However,  he  chose  the  law  for  his  profession.  That  he 
did  not  have  to  watch  his  practice  grow  through  a  long 
season  of  painful  probation  is  shown  by  the  record  of  sixty- 
eight  cases  before  the  chief  court  of  the  Province  during 
the  first  year  after  his  admission  to  the  Bar,  and  nearly 
twice  that  many  the  second  year. 

Although,  as  I  said,  he  loved  a  farmer's  life,  he  was 
allowed  little  leisure  to  follow  it,  serving  in  succession  as 
member  of  the  Virginia  House  of  Burgesses,  member  of 
Congress,  Governor  of  Virginia,  member  of  Congress  again, 
Minister  to  France,  Secretary  of  State,  Vice-President,  and 
President. 

Perhaps  many  other  men  have  served  the  public  for  as 
long  a  term,  but  I  challenge  historj^  to  find  another  who 
has  accomplished  so  much  for  his  country. 

From  the  founding  of  Jamestown  to  the  present  day,  no 
man,  Washington  not  excepted,  has  had  the  influence  over 
the  nation  that  Jefferson  wielded. 

To  have  been  the  author  of  the  great  Declaration,  it 
would  seem,  were  fame  enough  for  one  American,  but  for 
him  that  was  only  the  beginning.  Independence  achieved, 
he  set  about  making  his  own  state  really  free  and  intro- 
duced into  the  Virginia  Legislature  bill  after  bill  which 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  145 

cut  off  the  exeresences  of  a  monarchial  system,  lingering  in 
the  practices  of  a  new-born  nation.  These  bills  were  not 
all  carried  when  he  proposed  them,  by  any  means,  but  hear 
what,  in  the  end  they  gave  to  Virginia,  and  remember  that 
these  things  came  through  the  efforts  of  one  man :  religious 
freedom,  the  fight  for  which  began  in  '76  and  continued 
till  1785 ;  the  system  of  entails  broken  up ;  the  importation 
of  slaves  prohibited,  and  primo-geniture  discontinued. 

Jefferson  was  not  a  fluent  speaker,  but  a  clear  thinker. 
Besides  this,  he  had  a  great  antipathy  to  appearing  in 
print.  Therefore,  when  it  was  necessary  to  say  or  do  any- 
thing, he  had  only  to  tell  somebody  what  to  say  or  do,  and 
the  thing  was  accomplished. 

Leicester  Ford,  who  has  compiled  a  very  thorough  Life 
of  Jefferson,  says  that  "he  influenced  American  thought 
more  than  any  other  person,  yet  boasted  that  he  never 
wrote  for  the  press.  By  means  of  others,  he  promulgated 
that  mars  of  doctrine,  nowhere  formulated,  known  as  The 
Jeffersonian  Principles."  The  doctrine  that  goes  by  the 
name  of  Monroe  was  probably  his  also. 

That  the  principles  of  the  Democratic  Party  have 
remained  unchanged  from  his  day  to  ours  only  shows  the 
clearness  and  correctness  of  his  logic.  Not  only  is  this  true, 
but  he  thoroughly  and  conscientiously  believed  in  the 
things  he  taught,  the  theory  of  States  Bights  being  a  child 
of  his  own  brain. 

During  his  two  terms  as  President,  and  throughout  the 
remainder  of  his  life,  such  was  the  faith  of  his  party  in 
his  wisdom,  foresight,  and  political  integrity,  that  he  had 
only  to  express  a  wish,  and  it  became,  unquestioned,  the  law 
of  the  land. 

After  his  retirement,  his  party  proposed  no  measure 
until  a  visit  was  first  made  to  the  "Sage  of  Monticello," 
and  his  opinion  obtained. 

President  followed  President,  Jefferson  became  old  and 
infirm,  but  to  the  day  of  his  death,  he  was  undisputed 
leader  of  the  American  nation. 


146  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Did  he  not  deserve  the  name  of  seer  ?  Years  before  the 
Revolution,  he  warned  the  people  against  slavery,  declaring 
that  "nothing  is  more  certainly  written  in  the  book  of  fate 
than  that  these  people  are  to  be  free."  He  owned  the 
slaves  that  came  to  him  from  his  father  and  his  wife,  but  is 
said  never  to  have  purchased  any. 

Among  the  things  accomplished  during  his  presidency 
are  the  extermination  of  the  Mediterranean  pirates,  the 
exploration  of  the  West,  public  debt  diminished,  emigration 
of  Indians  beyond  the  Mississippi  promoted,  and  the 
wonderful  Louisiana  purchase. 

Though  his  second  term  was  clouded  by  constant  war 
in  Europe,  and  the  continued  depredations  on  American 
commerce,  at  its  close,  he  was  urged  to  serve  for  the  third 
term,  the  Legislatures  of  five  States  requesting  it,  showing 
that  he  was  not  held  responsible  for  the  condition  of  affairs. 

His  was  a  many  sided  nature.  Great  statesman  that  he 
•was,  great  political  scientist,  his  ability  did  not  stop  there. 
His  interest  in  commerce,  agriculture,  literature,  history, 
music,  education,  and  the  natural  sciences  was  unbounded, 
and  his  private  collections,  perhaps,  were  unexcelled  at  that 
time. 

No  man  has  done  more  for  the  cause  of  education  among 
us  than  he.  He  it  was  who  proposed  a  bill  for  "the  free 
training  of  all  free  children,  male  and  female. ' '  This  was 
ten  years  before  the  admission  of  girls  to  the  common 
schools  of  Boston.  His  reason  for  wanting  good  schools  in 
Virginia  was  unique — he  said  he  objected  to  being  a  beggar 
for  the  crumbs  that  fell  from  the  tables  of  the  North.  He 
pleaded  for  nonsectarian  schools,  and  was,  therefore, 
called  by  many  atheistic. 

This  was  one  of  the  obstacles  that  he  had  to  overcome 
in  his  fight  for  the  University  of  Virginia.  Princeton  was 
then  sectarian — William  and  Mary  was  controlled  by  the 
Episcopal  Church.  The  result  of  all  this  thought  and 
desire  exists  for  us  today  in  the  University  of  Virginia — 
the  first  real  University  in  America. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  147 

Thomas  Nelson  Page  says,  "No  stranger  story  of  self 
sacrifice  and  devotion  to  a  high  ideal  in  the  face  of  trials, 
which  to  lesser  genius  might  have  appeared  insurmount- 
able, and  of  disappointments  which  to  less  courage  must 
have  proved  fatal,  has  ever  been  written  than  that  which 
recounts  the  devotion  of  the  last  twenty  years  of  the  life  of 
Thomas  Jefferson  to  the  establishment  of  a  great  univer- 
sity."  The  corner  stone  of  Central  College,  which  was 
afterwards  enlarged  to  the  University  of  Virginia,  was 
laid  in  1816  by  President  Monroe,  in  the  presence  of 
Jefferson  and  Madison,  ex-presidents. 

Not  only  did  Jefferson  see  the  need  for  this  school,  and 
work  to  carry  it  through,  but  he  actually  drew  the  plans 
for  the  buildings,  modelling  them  after  those  of  ancient 
Greece  and  Rome. 

Page  says,  to  quote  from  the  same  author — and,  if  you 
want  to  read  an  interesting  book,  read  his  ' '  Old  Dominion ' ' 
— "If  any  pile  of  buildings  in  the  world  is  fitted  by  its 
beauty  to  be  the  abode  of  philosophy  it  is  this.  *  *  *  *  The 
University  has  excelled  in  scholastic  results  any  similar 
institution  in  the  country.  She  has  a  larger  representa- 
tion in  Congress  than  any  other,  a  larger  representation  on 
the  bench  and  a  larger  representation  in  the  medical  de- 
partments of  both  army  and  navy.  This  has  been  accom- 
plished on  an  income  less  than  that  of  many  second  rate 
colleges. ' ' 

This  result,  and  the  high  standard  prevailing  in  the 
University  today,  have  more  than  justified  Jefferson  for 
all  his  labor.  His  constant  refrain  was,  "We  are  working 
for  posterity. ' ' 

The  project  was  in  his  brain  five  years  before  he  began 
work  on  it.  One  of  his  proudest  titles  is  "Father  of  the 
University  of  Virginia." 

Jefferson's  writings  consist  mostly  of  letters  and  ad- 
dresses, besides  "A  Summary  View  of  the  Rights  of 
British  America, ' '  written  before  the  Revolution,  circulated 


148  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

in  England,  and  attributed  to  Burke,  and  the  well  known 
and  valuable  ' '  Notes  on  Virginia. ' ' 

He  loved  his  home  and  his  family,  and  seems  to  have 
been  peculiarly  blessed  in  them.  He  married  a  rich  young 
widow — Martha  Skelton — though  it  does  not  appear  that 
he  did  so  because  she  was  rich. 

Of  several  children  only  two  grew  to  maturity,  and 
only  one  survived  him.  His  wife  lived  just  ten  years  after 
their  marriage,  and  almost  with  her  last  breath  begged  him 
not  to  give  her  children  a  step-mother.  He  made  and  kept 
the  promise. 

I  know  I  have  given  a  rose-colored  account  of  him,  yet 
some  shadow  belongs  to  the  portrayal.  No  one  could  do  the 
things  that  he  did  and  not  have  enemies.  Particularly  do 
politicians  not  handle  each  other  with  gloves.  Jefferson 
has  been  called  all  the  ugly  names  in  man's  vocabulary, 
but  very  little,  if  any,  real  evidence  can  be  adduced  to 
support  any  of  this. 

With  all  his  gifts,  he  was  unfitted  to  lead  a  people  in 
the  trying  time  of  war;  consequently,  his  governorship  of 
Virginia,  occurring  during  the  Revolution,  and  his  second 
term  as  President  were  not  eminently  successful.  No  one 
can  deny  the  bitter  emnity  between  him  and  Hamilton  any 
more  than  any  one  can  prove  that  the  former  was  more  to 
blame  than  the  latter.  Admit  that  he  was  often  theoretical 
and  visionary,  yet  the  work  he  accomplished  proves  that 
he  was  even  more  practical  and  farsighted. 

That  he  was  not  free  from  idiosyncrasies  is  shown  by 
the  manner  in  which  he  went  to  his  first  inauguration,  and 
the  fact  that  he  always  dressed  as  a  farmer — never  as  a 
President. 

All  this  was  to  prove  his  steadfastness  of  faith  in 
democratic  ways  and  institutions.  He  would  not  indulge 
in  making  a  formal  speech  at  the  opening  of  Congress,  but 
wrote  and  sent  his  "message"  by  hand — a  practice  followed 
by  every  President  since,  with  the  exception  of  President 
Wilson,  1913. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  149 

In  all  things  he  was  a  strict  constructionist.  But  none 
of  these  things  can  detract  much  from  the  name  and  fame 
of  a  man  who  has  put  such  foundation  stones  in  our  civiliza- 
tion. 

I  have  drawn  my  data  mostly  from  the  writings  of  one 
who  holds  the  opposite  political  tenets — yet  I  find  it  record- 
ed that  "Jefferson's  personal  animosities  were  few" — that 
he  couldn't  long  hold  anger  in  his  heart — that  "to  this  day 
the  multitude  cherish  and  revere  his  memory,  and  in  so 
doing,  pay  a  just  debt  of  gratitude  to  a  friend,  who  not 
only  served  them,  as  many  have  done,  but  who  honored  and 
respected  them,  as  very  few  have  done." 

His  hospitality  and  the  public  desire  to  see  him  were 
so  great  that  his  home  was  for  many  years  a  kind  of  un- 
profitable hotel,  because  everything  was  free  of  charge.  It 
was  always  full,  and  sometimes  his  housekeeper  had  to 
provide  fifty  beds.  This  great  expense,  added  to  some 
security  debts,  left  him  a  poor  man.  In  fact,  he  was  in 
need,  but  when  the  public  found  it  out,  money  came  in 
in  sufficient  quantities  to  enable  him  to  continue  his  mode 
of  life. 

Like  Shakespeare,  he  wrote  his  own  epitaph,  any  one 
item  of  which  would  entitle  him  to  the  love  of  posterity: 
"Here  was  buried  Thomas  Jefferson,  Author  of  the  Declara- 
tion of  American  Independence,  of  the  Statute  of  Virginia, 
lor  religious  freedom,  and  Father  of  the  University  of 
Virginia. ' ' 

I  fear  I  have  been  tedious,  I  know  I  have  been  trite — 
yet  I  beg  you  to  read  for  yourselves  the  history  and  letters 
of  this  great  man. 

That  his  death  occurred  on  the  4th  day  of  July,  1826, 
just  fifty  years  from  the  day  when  the  wonderful  Declara- 
tion was  made,  and  coincident  with  that  of  his  former  col- 
league, another  ex-president,  seems  a  fitting  close  to  a  most 
remarkable  career. 


150  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

ORATORS  OF  THE  AMERICAN  REVOLUTION. 

Miss  SUSIE  GENTRY,  Vice  State  Regent,  Tennessee. 

Time,  the  artificer,  makes  men,  as  well  as  things,  for 
their  day  and  use. 

The  Revolution  was  the  evolution  of  an  idea — one 
inherent  in  all  humanity — Liberty! 

First,  was  the  thought  of  a  home,  the  most  sacred  and 
best  of  man's  sanctuaries.  These  pioneer  Colonists,  fleeing 
from  religious  persecution,  debt  and  poverty,  often  came 
to  an  untrodden  wilderness  of  limitless  forest  and  plain,  to 
form  a  local  habitation  and  a  name. 

After  the  establishment  of  the  home,  education  and  its 
application  followed,  through  the  teaching  and  oratory  of 
the  pulpit  to  the  white  man  and  Indian.  Next  in  order  was 
self-government.  The  Revolutionary  period  was  productive 
not  only  of  the  general  and  soldier,  but  the  statesman  and 
orator,  who  set  forth  the  "grievances  of  the  people"  in 
most  glowing  and  convincing  terms.  The  term  "orator" 
has  two  specific  meanings — in  common  language,  one  who 
delivers  an  oration,  a  public  speaker;  and  technically,  one 
who  prays  for  relief,  a  petitioner.  The  orators  of  the  Revo- 
lutionary period  were  both  in  one.  The  true  orator  is  the 
poet  of  the  practical.  He  must  be  an  enthusiast ;  he  must 
be  sincere ;  he  must  be  fearless,  and  as  simple  as  a  child ;  he 
must  be  warm  and  earnest,  able  to  play  upon  the  emotions, 
as  a  skillful  musician  his  instrument  that  responds  to  his 
every  touch,  be  it  ever  so  light  and  delicate.  So  shall  his 
words  descend  upon  the  people  like  cloven  tongues  of  fire, 
inspiring,  sanctifying,  beautifying  and  convincing;  for  an 
orator 's  words  are  designed  for  immediate  effect. 

When  the  "Stamp  Act"  was  repealed,  March  18,  1766, 
Jonathan  Mayhew  delivered  a  thrilling  speech,  known  as 
"A  Patriot's  Thanksgiving,"  in  which  he  said:  "The 
repeal  has  restored  things  to  order.  The  course  of 
justice  is  no  longer  obstructed.  All  lovers  of  liberty  have 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  151 

reason  to  rejoice.    Blessed  revolution !    How  great  are  our 
obligations  to  the  Supreme  Governor  of  the  world ! ' ' 

Even  the  conservatives,  Benjamin  Franklin  and  George 
Washington,  take  of  the  promethean  fire  of  patriotism ;  it  is 
seen  in  Franklin's  writings,  in  Washington's  "Farewell 
Address" — his  masterpiece  of  prophetic  admonition,  de- 
livered in  the  style  and  diction  of  a  gifted  orator.  A  long 
and  faithful  career  of  usefulness,  and  the  very  human 
touch  he  had  gained  as  a  soldier  and  general,  particularly 
during  that  terrible  year  of  1777,  developed  the  hitherto 
unknown  gift. 

Of  the  men  who  composed  the  Second  Colonial  and 
First  Continental  Congress,  which  met  at  Philadelphia, 
September  5,  1774,  William  Pitt  said  in  his  speech  to  the 
House  of  Lords:  "History  has  always  been  my  favorite 
study,  and  in  the  celebrated  writings  of  antiquity  I  have 
often  admired  the  patriotism  of  Greece  and  Rome,  but,  my 
lords,  T  must  avow  that  in  the  master  states  of  the  world  I 
know  not  a  people  or  senate  who  can  stand  in  preference  to 
the  delegates  of  America  assembled  in  general  congress  at 
Philadelphia." 

.  Samuel  Adams  was  one  of  the  foremost  orators  and 
patriots  of  America,  and  was  of  Massachusetts'  famous 
bouquet — James  Otis,  Joseph  Warren,  Josiah  Quincy,  John 
pnd  John  Quincy  Adams — and  left  his  work  on  the  history 
of  America  as  a  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

James  Otis,  rext  in  chronological  order,  was  a  bold, 
commanding  orator,  and  the  first  to  speak  against  the  taxing 
of  the  colonies.  He  was  called  "the  silver-tongued  orator" 
and  "a  flame  of  fire."  His  death  was  as  unusual  as  his 
gift — he  was  killed  by  a  stroke  of  lightning  May,  1772. 

Joseph  Warren  and  Josiah  Quincy  were  both  men  of 
great  talents  and  power,  Warren  was  elected  twice  to 
deliver  the  oration  in  commemoration  of  the  massacre  of 
the  fifth  of  March;  he  rendered  efficient  service  by  both 
his  writing  and  addresses;  and  was  distinguished  as  a 


152  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

physician,  especially  in  the  treatment  of  smallpox.  He  was 
killed  while  fighting  as  a  volunteer  at  Bunker  Hill. 

Josiah  Quincy's  powers  as  an  orator  were  of  a  very 
high  order.  It  is  sad  to  think  that  he  died  the  very  day 
he  reached  his  native  land,  after  a  voyage  to  Europe  in  the 
interest  of  the  colonies.  One  does  not  wonder  that  John 
Adams  possessed  influence,  when  in  voting  for  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence  he  exclaimed :  ' '  Sink  or  swim,  live  of 
die,  survive  or  perish,  I  give  my  heart  and  hand  to  tliis 
vote ; ' '  nor  that  the  son  of  such  a  father  was  called  ' '  The 
Old  Man  Eloquent."  and  the  "Champion  of  the  Rights  of 
Petition,"  who  thought  "no  man's  vote  lost  which  is  cast 
for  the  right." 

John  Adams  is  the  one  man  who  remembered  liberty 
and  the  people,  for  when  he  died  July  4, 1826,  his  last  words 
were,  "It  is  the  glorious  Fourth  of  July !  God  bless  it — 
God  bless  you  all ! " 

From  this  cursory  glance  of  the  orators  of  Massachu- 
setts, we  can  well  understand  how,  like  the  "alabaster 
box"  of  old,  the  perfume  of  their  noble  deeds  for  the  cause 
of  right  still  lingers. 

Alexander  Hamilton  was  an  orator  that  accomplished 
much  for  the  colonies  with  his  forceful,  facile  and  brilliant 
pen,  as  did  Madison  and  Jay,  in  the  ' '  Federalist. ' '  Patrick 
Henry,  the  red  feather,  of  the  Revolutionary  period,  as  is 
E.  "W.  Carmack  of  to-day — is  by  the  South  regarded  the 
Magna  Stella  of  that  marvelous  galaxy  of  stars.  It  is  prob- 
able that  his  oratory  was  not  as  much  a  product  of  nature 
as  was  thought  at  the  time  when  it  was  so  effective.  It  was 
somewhat  an  inheritance,  as  he  was  the  great-nephew  of 
the  Scotch  historian  Robertson,  and  the  nephew  of  William 
Winston  who  was  regarded  as  an  eloquent  speaker  in  his 
day. 

Patrick,  after  six  weeks  study  of  law,  we  are  told,  con- 
menced  the  practice  of  law  (having  the  incumbrance  of  a 
family  and  poverty)  and  with  what  success,  all  the  world 
knows.  It  was  in  the  celebrated  "Parson's  case"  that  he 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  153 

won  his  spurs,  and  the  epithet  of  ' '  the  orator  of  Nature ; ' ' 
also  his  election  to  the  House  of  Burgesses,  of  Virginia. 
Nine  years  after  he  made  his  famous  speech  in  which  he 
told  George  III  he  might  profit  by  the  examples  of  Ceasar 
and  Charles  I,  he  delivered  his  greatest  effort  of  oratory — 
in  which  he  said,  ' '  I  know  not  what  course  others  may  take, 
but  give  me  liberty,  or  give  me  death ! ' ' 

Thomas  Jefferson  was  the  father  of  that  instrument, 
the  Declaration  of  Independence1 — that  gives  us  "life, 
liberty  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness, "  in  so  far  as  we  tres- 
pass not  on  the  moral  and  civil  rights  of  our  neighbor — 
and  was  persuasive  and  eloquent,  as  well  as  an  acute  poli- 
tician. He  was  the  acknowledged  head  of  his  party;  and 
his  work  was  of  the  uttermost  importance  to  both  the 
colonies  and  states.  No  one  politician  and  orator  has  left  a 
more  indelible  impression  upon  succeeding  generations  than 
he. 

Thomas  Paine  also  did  his  quota  as  an  orator  and 
writer;  and  great  were  the  results  accomplished  by  his 
"Common  Sense"  and  the  first  "Crisis."  Paine  was  not 
only  a  writer  and  orator,  but  a  soldier.  Under  General 
Nathaniel  Greene  he  rendered  such  efficient  and  valuable 
service  that  he  was  called  the  "hero  of  Fort  Mifflin." 
Although  he  was  an  Englishman,  who  came  to  America  and 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  Continentals,  the  English  nation 
are  glad  to  own  him.  William  Cobbett  (the  English 
statesman)  says  "whoever  wrote  the  Declaration,  Paine  was 
its  author." 

Paine  was  one  of  the  most  noted  orators,  if  we  remember 
that  an  ' '  orator  is  one  who  prays  for  relief — a  petitioner, ' ' 
whether  it  be  viva  voce  or  with  the  pen.  We  wish  it  were 
possible  in  the  time  allotted  to  us  to  give  extracts  from  the 
speeches  and  writings  of  these  orators  of  the  Revolution. 
How  grateful  we  should  be,  and  what  a  debt  of  gratitude 
we  owe  each  of  them,  for  their  labors  that  have  long  since 
received  the  encomium  from  God  and  man — "well  done, 
thou  good  and  faithful  servant. ' ' — American  Monthly. 


154  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


THE  FLAG  OF  OUR  COUNTRY. 

The  flag  of  our  country,  how  proudly  it  waves 
In  the  darkness  of  night,  in  the  light  of  the  sun, 

In  silence  it  watches  our  patriots'  graves, 
In  splendor  it  tells  of  their  victories  won! 

It  waves,  as  it  waved  in  the  brave  days  of  old, 
An  emblem  of  glory,  of  hope,  and  of  life; 

A  pledge  to  the  world  in  each  star  and  each  fold 
Of  a  love  that  endures  through  all  danger  and  strife. 

Of  love  that  is  deep  as  the  sea  'neath  its  blue; 

Of  a  love  that  is  pure  as  the  light  of  each  star; 
0,  flag  of  our  country,  the  brave  and  the  true 

Await  thee,  and  greet  thee,  and  bless  thee  afar! 

The  flag  of  our  country,  the  flag  of  the  free, 
The  hope  of  the  weary,  the  joy  of  the  sad, 

May  our  eyes  at  the  last,  still  thy  bright  promise  see 
That  each  slave  shall  know  thee,  arise  and  be  glad ! 

The  flag  of  our  country,  the  flag  of  our  love, 

Our  hearts  are  aflame  with  thy  red,  white  and  blue; 

May  thy  glory  increase  while  thy  stars  shine  above, 
To  thy  promise  and  pledge  may  the  children  be  true. 

0,  the  red,  white  and  blue !    0,  the  flag  of  the  free ! 

Sweet  liberty  calls  to  the  nations  afar, 
Thy  glory  illumines  the  land  and  the  sea, 

0,  flag  of  our  country,  earth's  beautiful  star! 
— Metta  Thompson  in  American  Monthly. 


KEMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  155 


THE  OLD  VIRGINIA  GENTLEMAN. 

Many  of  you  have  no  doubt  heard  or  read  the  famous 
lecture  of  Dr.  Bagley,  entitled  "Bacon  and  Greens,"  and 
chuckled  over  his  vivid  description  of  "The  Old  Virginia 
Gentleman."  You  may  be  interested  in  knowing  that  a 
portrait  of  the  Hon.  James  Steptoe,  of  Federal  Hill,  Bed- 
ford County,  Virginia,  painted  by  Harvey  Mitchell  in  1826, 
was  the  inspiration  of  this  interesting  lecture. 

This  ' '  Old  Virginia  Gentleman ' '  was  a  worthy  represen- 
tative of  the  House  of  Steptoe,  whose  forefathers  played 
an  important  part  in  the  history  of  the  ' '  Old  World. ' '  The 
progenitor  of  this  interesting  family  was  Anthony  Steptoe, 
the  third  son  of  Sir  Philip  Steptoe,  of  England.  Anthony 
and  his  wife,  Lucy,  came  to  the  Colony  in  1676,  and  located 
in  Lancaster  County,  Virginia,  and  they  were  the  great 
grandparents  of  Hon.  James  Steptoe. 

' '  The  Old  Virginia  Gentleman ' '  was  one  of  four  broth- 
ers, George,  James,  Thomas,  and  William;  they  had  four 
half  sisters,  Elizabeth  and  Ann  Steptoe;  Mary  and  Anne 
Aylett;  and  two  step-sisters,  Elizabeth  and  Ann  Aylett; 
thus  the  families  of  Steptoe  and  Aylett  are  often  con- 
founded. 

Col.  James  Steptoe,  M.  D.,  of  "Homany  Hall,"  West- 
moreland County,  Virginia,  was  born  in  the  year  of  1710, 
and  died  in  1778.  He  was  a  distinguished  physician,  and 
held  many  positions  of  honor  and  trust  in  affairs  of  Church 
and  State.  He  married  firstly  Hannah  Ashton,  and  second- 
ly Elizabeth  Aylett,  the  widow  of  Col.  William  Aylett  and 
a  daughter  of  Col.  George  Eskridge.  The  descendants  of 
Colonel  Steptoe  and  Colonel  Aylett  are  often  confounded. 

Col.  Aylett  married  first  Ann  Ashton,  a  sister  of  Colonel 
Step  toe's  first  wife,  and  had  two  daughters,  Elizabeth  and 
Ann.  Elizabeth  Aylett  married  William  Booth,  and  Ann 
married  William  Augustin  Washington  (a  half-brother  of 
our  beloved  Gen.  George  Washington).  Colonel  Aylett 
married  secondly  Elizabeth  Eskridge,  and  had  two  daugh- 


156  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

ters,  Mary  and  Anne ;  Mary  married  Thomas  Ludwell  Lee, 
of  "Bell  Vieu;"  and  Anne  married  Richard  Henry  Lee,  of 
"Chantielly." 

Col.  James  Steptoe  had  two  daughters  by  his  first  mar- 
riage, Elizabeth  and  Ann;  Elizabeth  married  first  Philip 
Ludwell  Lee,  of  "Stratford,"  and  secondly  Philip  Richard 
Fendall;  and  Ann  married  first  Willoughby  Allerton,  and 
secondly  Col.  Samuel  Washington,  a  younger  brother  of 
Gen.  George  Washington.  Of  the  four  sons  of  Col.  James 
Steptoe,  George  and  Thomas  never  married ;  William  mar- 
ried Elizabeth  Robinson,  and  they  resided  at  the  old 
Robinson  homestead,  "Herwich. "  The  Hon.  James  Step- 
toe,  the  original  "The  Old  Virginia  Gentleman,"  was  born 
in  the  year  of  1750,  at  "Homany  Hall,"  Westmoreland 
County,  Virginia.  He  was  educated  at  William  and  Mary 
College,  and  while  there  was  a  fellow  student  of  Thomas 
Jefferson.  They  formed  a  close  friendship,  which  continued 
throughout  life.  It  was  through  the  influence  of  Jefferson 
that  James  Steptoe  was  appointed  to  an  office  under  Secre- 
tary Nelson,  after  which  he  was  transferred  in  1772,  at  the 
early  age  of  22,  to  the  clerkship  of  the  District  Court  at 
New  London,  in  Bedford  Co.,  Va.  This  position  he  held 
until  his  death  in  1826,  having  served  fifty-four  years.  He 
married  Frances  Galloway,  a  daughter  of  Col.  James  Gallo- 
way, of  Bedford  County. 

The  Hon.  James  Steptoe  built  the  mansion  house  known 
as  ' '  Federal  Hill, ' '  and  it  was  here  that  he  spent  his  useful 
life  surrounded  by  his  family,  and  noted  for  his  sincerity 
and  hospitality.  This  mansion  was  situated  three  miles 
from  "Poplar  Forest,"  the  abode  of  his  friend,  Thomas 
Jefferson,  who  loved  to  seek  seclusion  there  during  his 
intervals  of  rest  from  public  service. 

Upon  one  occasion  when  Gen.  Andrew  Jackson,  on  his 
way  to  Washington  just  after  the  battle  of  New  Orleans, 
had  stopped  to  dine  with  his  friend,  James  Steptoe,  he  met 
Thomas  Jefferson  just  at  the  gateway.  The  two  great  men 
dismounted  from  their  horses  and  exchanged  salutations 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  157 

with  each  other  and  with  their  host,  who  awaited  them  with- 
in upon  the  lawn.  Mr.  Jefferson,  with  his  courtly  manner, 
waving  his  hand,  stood  back  for  "Old  Hickory"  to  pass 
before  him;  but  that  gallant  soldier,  bowing  low,  said: 
"Surely,  Mr.  Jefferson  does  not  think  that  I  would  go  be- 
fore an  ex-President  of  the  United  States."  To  which  Mr. 
Jefferson  graciously  replied:  "It  would  ill  become  me  to 
take  precedence  of  the  hero  of  New  Orleans. ' '  Thus  these 
two  distinguished  men  stood  bowing  and  scraping  to  each 
other  in  the  roadway  in  true  "Gaston  and  Alfonse  style," 
while  Mr.  Steptoe  waited  for  them  with,  I  am  sure,  amused 
impatience ;  until  at  length  General  Jackson  threw  his  arms 
about  Mr.  Jefferson  and  gently  lifted  him  quite  over  the 
threshold,  and  then  the  General's  aide  and  the  other  gentry 
coming  up,  we  may  be  sure  they  had  a  jolly  good  time — a 
"feast  of  reason  and  a  flow  of  soul,"  not  forgetting  Mrs. 
Steptoe 's  bountiful  dinner  served  on  the  famous  Steptoe 
silver,  a  veritable  feast  of  "wines  on  the  leas,"  which  to 
read  about  makes  us  long  more  than  ever  for  a  return  of 
those  good  old  times. 

But  once  a  shadow  fell  upon  the  friendship  of  Mr. 
Jefferson  and  Mr.  Steptoe,  as  clouds  will  fall  upon  human 
friendships.  James  Steptoe  had  another  valued  friend, 
Major  Gibbon,  a  gallant  officer  of  the  Revolutionary  army, 
who  had  led  the  forlorn  hope  at  the  battle  of  Stony  Point. 
This  old  hero  had  been  given  the  appointment  of  collector 
of  customs  at  Richmond,  but  had  been  removed  by  Jefferson 
because  it  had  been  represented  to  him  that  Major  Gibbon 
was  011  familiar  terms  with  Aaron  Burr,  who  was  then  on 
trial  at  Richmond  for  acts  charged  against  him  as  treason- 
able. Soon  after  the  removal  of  Major  Gibbon  Mr.  Jefferson 
was  on  one  of  his  visits  at  Poplar  Forest,  but  his  old  friend, 
James  Steptoe,  who  was  usually  the  first  to  welcome  him, 
the  illustrious  visitor,  to  his  summer  home,  neither  went  in 
person  nor  sent  a  message  of  salutation  to  his  life-long 
friend.  Days  lengthened  into  weeks,  and  still  he  made  no 
sign,  and  at  length  Mr.  Jefferson,  on  a  bright  summer  morn- 


158  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

ing,  rode  over  to  Mr.  Step  toe's  and  dismounted  from  his 
horse  at  the  gate,  and  on  entering  the  yard  found  Mr. 
Steptoe  walking  to  and  fro  on  his  porch,  apparently  uncon- 
scious of  his  guest's  arrival. 

Mr.  Jefferson  advanced  with  outstretched  hand  and 
cordial  smile,  but  Mr.  Steptoe  gazed  cold  and  stern  upon  his 
visitor,  returning  no  look  or  word  of  kindness  for  the 
offered  greeting  of  the  President,  who  thus  addressed  him : 
' '  Why,  James  Steptoe,  how  is  this  ?  I  have  been  for  weeks 
within  a  stone 's  throw  of  you,  and  though  you  have  usually 
been  the  first  to  welcome  me  home,  your  face  is  now  turned 
from  me,  and  you  give  me  no  welcome  to  your  house. ' '  To 
this  Mr.  Steptoe  coolly  replied:  "Mr.  Jefferson,  I  have  been 
disappointed  in  you,  sir,  you  are  not  the  man  I  took  you 
to  be.  You  know  as  well  as  I  do  that  Maj.  James  Gibbon 
was  a  brave,  a  meritorious  officer  in  the  Revolutionary 
army,  that  he  served  under  Aaron  Burr,  who  was  also  a 
gallant  soldier,  and  his  officers  were  greatly  attached  to  him. 
Now  when  Colonel  Burr  has  been  brought  to  Richmond 
for  trial,  committed  to  prison  and  every  indignity  heaped 
upon  him,  and  just  because  Major  Gibbon  has  supplied  his 
old  commander  with  some  necessaries  and  comforts,  you, 
from  hatred  of  Burr,  have  wreaked  your  vengeance  on 
Gibbon  and  deprived  a  faithful  old  soldier  of  an  office 
which  was  his  only  means  of  support."  "Why,  Steptoe, 
is  that  all?"  said  Jefferson,  "I  assure  you  the  matter  had 
not  been  so  presented  to  me  before.  But  the  same  hand  that 
removed  Major  Gibbon  can  replace  him,  and  justice  shall 
be  done  him  at  once."  "Then  you  are,  indeed,  my  friend, 
and  welcome  as  ever  to  my  home  and  heart,"  cried  James 
Steptoe. 

James  Steptoe 's  land  and  silver  are  gone,  his  bones  have 
turned  to  dust;  and  ere  long  his  name  may  be  forgotten, 
but  let  us  now  honor  the  man  who  would  refuse  the  prof- 
fered hand  of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  when 
that  hand  was  stained  by  an  unworthy  act.  Would  there 
were  more  men  of  such  mettle  in  our  day ! 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  159 

James  Steptoe  was  not  only  noted  for  his  hospitality 
and  justness,  but  also  for  his  charity.  Driving  along  in  his 
coach  and  four,  he  passed  the  house  of  a  certain  widow, 
Mrs.  Chaffee.  Upon  noticing  a  crowd  gathered  around,  he 
sent  his  coachman,  Ben,  to  inquire  the  cause.  Hearing  that 
the  poor  woman  was  being  sold  out  for  debt  he  descended 
from  his  carriage,  stopped  the  auction,  paid  the  mortgage, 
and  added  one  more  noble  act  of  charity  to  his  record. 

James  Steptoe  was  beloved  by  everyone,  and  especially 
so  by  his  slaves,  whom  he  had  taught  different  trades  that 
they  might  support  themselves  after  his  death  when,  by 
his  will,  they  were  all  set  free.  A  handsome  monument  in 
the  old  family  burying  ground  in  Bedford  County,  bears 
this  inscription,  "James  Steptoe,  born  1750,  died  1826,  for 
fifty-four  years  the  Clerk  of  Bedford  County. ' ' 

The  office  of  clerk  of  the  Court  of  Bedford  County  has 
been  held  by  the  Steptoe  family  in  its  lineal  and  collateral 
branches  for  more  than  a  hundred  years. 

The  character  of  James  Steptoe  may  be  described  in  a 
few  words,  integrity,  independence,  and  the  strictest  form 
of  republican  simplicity.  Though  descended,  as  has  been 
shown,  from  a  long  line  of  the  better  class  of  English 
gentry,  he  never  alluded  to  it  himself;  in  fact,  it  was  not 
known  in  his  family  until  after  his  death,  when  they  learned 
it  through  his  correspondence.  He  was  a  man  who  held 
very  decided  opinions  on  all  subjects,  and  would  at  times 
express  them  as  to  men  and  public  affairs  in  very  strong 
language,  being  strong  in  his  friendships  and  equally  strong 
in  his  dislikes.  As  a  clerk,  he  was  everything  that  could  be 
desired,  polite  and  obliging,  as  all  Old  Virginia  Gentlemen 
are;  careful  and  attentive  in  the  business  of  his  office  and 
in  court,  and  ever  ready  at  all  times  to  give  information 
and  advice  to  those  who  needed  it. 

The  Hon.  James  Steptoe  and  his  wife,  Frances  Galloway, 
were  the  parents  of  five  sons  and  four  daughters,  as  follows : 
Major  James,  who  succeeded  his  father  as  Clerk  of  Bedford, 
and  who  married  Catherine  Mitchell;  Dr.  William,  of 


160  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Lynchburg,  who  married  first  Nancy  Brown,  and  second 
Mary  Dillon;  George,  of  Bedford  County,  who  married 
Maria  Thomas;  Robert,  of  Bedford  County,  who  married 
Elizabeth  Leftwich;  Thomas,  who  inherited  the  old  home, 
married  Louise  C.  Yancy ;  Elizabeth  Prentise,  who  married 
Hon.  Charles  Johnston,  of  Richmond,  Va. ;  Frances,  who 
married  Henry  S.  Langhorne,  of  Lynchburg,  Va. ;  Sallie, 
who  married  William  Massie,  of  Nelson  County,  Virginia ; 
Lucy,  who  married  Robert  Penn,  of  Bedford  County, 
Virginia.  James  Step  toe's  descendants  are  scattered 
throughout  the  United  States,  and  are  among  our  most 
distinguished  citizens.  He  has  also  descendants  in  England. 
The  old  portrait  by  Harvey  Mitchell  is  now  owned  by 
the  Rt.  Rev.  James  Steptoe  Johnston,  Bishop  of  Western 
Texas ;  and  a  fine  copy  of  the  same  is  owned  by  Mrs.  Wil- 
liam Waldorf  Astor,  of  Cliveden-on-the-Thames,  England, 
— EDNA  JONES  COLLIER,  in  American  Monthly. 


WHEN  WASHINGTON  WAS  WED. 

Who  does  not  wish  that  he  might  have  been  there, 
When  Martha  Custis  came  down  the  stair 
In  silk  brocade  and  with  powdered  hair, 
On  that  long  ago  Saturday  clear  and  fine, 
A.  D.  Seventeen  fifty-nine? 

Out  from  St.  Peter's  belfry  old, 
Twelve  strokes  sounded  distinct  and  bold, 
So  in  history  the  tale  is  told, 
When  Dr.  Mossen,  preacher  of  zest, 
Long  since  gone  to  his  last  long  rest, 
There  in  the  Custis  drawing  room, 
New  world  house,  with  an  old  world  bloom, 
Spake  out  the  words  that  made  them  one, 
Martha  Custis  and  Washington. 
Trembling  a  little  and  pale  withal, 
She  faced  her  lover  so  straight  and  tall, 
Oh,  happiest  lady  beneath  the  sun ! 
Given  as  bride  to  George  Washington. 


KEMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  161 

Brave  was  the  groom  and  fair  the  bride, 

Standing  expectant  side  by  side, 

But  how  little  they  knew  or  guessed 

What  the  future  for  them  possessed; 

How  the  joys  of  a  wedded  life 

Would  be  mingled  with  horrors  of  blood  and  strife; 

How  in  triumph  together  they'd  stand, 

Covered  with  plaudits  loud  and  grand, 

Yes — covered  with  glory  together  they'd  won, 

Martha  Custis  and  Washington. 

Where  is  the  gown  in  which  she  was  wed? 
Brocade,  woven  with  silver  thread? 
Where  are  the  pearls  that  graced  her  head? 
Where  are  her  high-heeled  silken  shoon 
That  stepped  in   time  to  the  wedding  tune? 
Where  are  her  ruffles  of  fine  point  lace? 
Gone — all  gone  with  their  old  world  grace. 
But  the  world  remembers  them  every  one, 
And  blesses  the  lady  of  Washington. 

It  is  difficult  to  give  the  proper  credit  for  the  above 
poem.  Mrs.  "Walter  J.  Sears,  New  York  City  Chapter, 
found  a  few  beautiful  lines,  author  unknown,  added  some 
lines  herself,  and  then  sent  the  whole  to  "Will  Carlton," 
who  revised  and  added  to  them.  Mrs.  Sears  recited  the 
poem  at  the  celebration  of  Washington's  wedding  day  by 
the  New  York  City  Chapter,  D.  A.  R.,  in  January,  1909. 


162  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


RHODE  ISLAND  IN  THE  AMERICAN 
REVOLUTION. 

The  American  colonies,  though  subjects  of  Great 
Britain,  stoutly  resisted  the  payment  of  revenues  of 
customs;  not  because  they  doubted  the  justice,  but  they 
did  object  to  the  intolerant  manner  of  demanding  the 
revenues.  Rhode  Island,  the  smallest  of  the  thirteen 
colonies,  was  destined  to  take  an  important  part  in  this 
resistance  which  brought  about  the  American  Revolution. 

The  English  parliament,  in  1733,  passed  the  famous 
"Sugar  Act"  which  laid  a  heavy  tax  upon  West  India 
products  imported  into  the  northern  colonies.  Rhode 
Island  protested,  declaring  that  only  in  this  way  could  she 
be  paid  for  her  exports  to  the  West  Indies  and  thus  be  able 
to  purchase  from  England.  The  other  colonies  also  ob- 
jected and  Richard  Partridge,  the  appointed  agent  to  look 
after  the  interests  of  the  Rhode  Island  colony,  conducted 
this  affair  for  all  the  colonies.  In  his  letter  he  declared 
that  the  act  deprived  the  colonists  of  their  rights  as  Eng- 
lishmen, in  laying  taxes  upon  them  without  their  consent 
or  representation.  Thus,  thirty-seven  years  before  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  the  war-cry  of  the  Revolu- 
tion was  first  sounded  and  by  the  Quaker  agent  of  Rhode 
Island. 

In  1764  a  new  "Sugar  Act"  was  passed.  Parliament 
hoped  that  a  reduction  from  six  pence  to  three  pence  would 
conciliate  the  colonies.  Neither  the  "Sugar  Act"  nor  the 
proposed  "Stamp  Act"  was  accepted.  The  colonists  still 
contended  such  an  act  and  its  acceptance  to  be  inconsistent 
with  the  rights  of  British  subjects.  A  special  session  of  the 
Rhode  Island  assembly  was  convened.  A  committee  of  cor- 
respondence was  appointed  to  confer  with  the  other 
colonies  and  the  agent  was  directed  "to  do  anything  in  his 
power,  either  alone  or  joining  with  the  agents  of  other 
governors  to  procure  a  repeal  of  this  act  and  to  prevent 
the  passage  of  any  act  that  should  impose  taxes  inconsistent 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  163 

with  the  rights  of  British  subjects."  Thus  did  Rhode 
Island  expressly  deny  the  right  of  Parliament  to  pass  such 
an  act  and  also  declare  her  intention  to  preserve  her  privi- 
leges inviolate.  She  also  invited  the  other  colonies  to 
devise  a  plan  of  union  for  the  maintenance  of  the  liberties 
of  all. 

The  following  year  the  "Stamp  Act"  was  passed  and 
disturbances  followed.  The  assembly  convened  and 
through  a  committee  prepared  six  resolutions  more  concise 
and  emphatic  than  any  passed  by  the  other  colonies,  in 
which  they  declared  the  plantation  absolved  from  all 
allegiance  to  the  King  unless  these  "obnoxious  taxes" 
were  repealed.  Bold  measures !  But  they  show  the  spirit 
of  the  colony.  Johnston,  the  stamp-collector  for  Rhode 
Island,  resigned,  declaring  he  would  not  execute  his  office 
against  "the  will  of  our  Sovereign  Lord,  the  People."  In 
Newport  three  prominent  men  who  had  spoken  in  defence 
of  the  action  of  Parliament  were  hung  in  effigy  in  front 
of  the  court  house.  At  evening  the  effigies  were  taken  down 
and  burned.  The  revenue  officers,  fearing  for  their  lives, 
took  refuge  on  a  British  man-of-war  lying  in  the  harbor 
and  refused  to  return  until  the  royal  governor  would 
guarantee  their  safety.  The  assembly  appointed  two  men 
to  represent  Rhode  Island  in  the  convention  about  to  as- 
semble in  New  York.  This  convention,  after  a  session  of 
nearly  three  weeks,  adopted  a  declaration  of  the  rights  and 
grievances  of  the  colonies.  The  Rhode  Island  delegates 
reported  the  assembly  and  a  day  of  public  thanksgiving 
was  appointed  for  a  blessing  upon  the  endeavors  of  this 
colony  to  preserve  its  valuable  privileges.  The  day  before 
the  "Stamp  Act"  was  to  take  effect  all  the  royal  governors 
took  the  oath  to  sustain  it,  except  Samuel  Ward,  governor 
of  Rhode  Island,  who  stoutly  refused. 

The  fatal  day  dawned.  Not  a  stamp  was  to  be  seen. 
Commerce  was  crushed.  Justice  was  delayed.  Not  a 
statute  could  be  enforced.  The  leading  merchants  of  Amer- 


164  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

ica  agreed  to  support  home  manufacturers  and  to  this  end 
pledged  themselves  to  eat  no  more  lamb  or  mutton. 

The  following  year,  January,  1766,  the  papers  of  remon 
strance  had  reached  England;  and  Parliament  turned  its 
attention  to  American  affairs.  The  struggle  was  long  and 
stormy;  but  the  "Stamp  Act"  was  repealed,  with  the 
saving  clause  that  "Parliament  had  full  right  to  bind  the 
colonies  in  all  cases  whatsoever." 

Meanwhile,  patriotic  societies  were  being  formed  in 
all  the  colonies  under  the  name  of  "Sons  of  Liberty." 
Rhode  Island  has  the  peculiar  honor  of  organizing  a 
similar  society:  "Daughters  of  Liberty."  By  invitation 
eighteen  young  ladies  assembled  at  the  house  of  Dr. 
Ephriam  Bowen,  in  Providence,  and  spent  the  day  in 
spinning.  They  agreed  to  purchase  no  goods  of  British 
manufacture  until  the  "Stamp  Act"  should  be  repealed 
and  cheerfully  agreed  to  dispense  with  tea.  This  society 
rapidly  increased  and  became  popular  throughout  Rhode 
Island. 

England  kept  her  faith  but  a  little  while  and  then 
proposed  to  raise  a  revenue  by  imposing  duties  on  glass, 
lead,  paint  and  paper,  and  a  tax  of  three  pence  a  pound  on 
tea.  This  aroused  fresh  indignation  throughout  the 
colonies.  In  Virginia  the  house  of  burgesses  passed  a  series 
of  resolutions  that  in  them  was  vested  the  sole  right  of 
taxing  the  colony.  Copies  were  sent  to  every  colonial 
assembly.  The  Rhode  Island  assembly  cordially  approved. 

The  next  month  the  British  armed  sloop  Liberty,  cruis- 
ing in  Narraganset  Bay  in  search  of  contraband  traders, 
needlessly  annoyed  all  the  coasting  vessels  that  came  in 
her  way.  Two  Connecticut  vessels  suspected  of  smuggling 
were  taken  into  Newport.  A  quarrel  ensued  between  the 
captain  of  one  of  the  vessels  and  the  captain  of  the  Liberty. 
The  yankee  captain  was  badly  treated  and  his  boat  fired 
upon.  The  same  evening  the  British  captain  went  ashore, 
was  captured  by  Newport  citizens  and  compelled  to  sum- 
mon all  his  crew  ashore  except  the  first  officer.  The  people 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  165 

then  boarded  the  Liberty,  sent  the  officer  on  shore,  then  cast 
the  cable  and  grounded  the  Liberty  at  the  Point.  There 
they  cut  away  the  masts,  scuttled  the  vessel,  carried  the 
boats  to  the  upper  end  of  the  town  and  burned  them.  This 
occurred  July,  1769,  and  was  "the  first  overt  act  of 
violence  offered  to  the  British  authorities  in  America." 

But  armed  vessels  continued  their  molestations.  The 
Rhode  Island  colony  was  not  asleep  but  awaiting  a  favor 
able  opportunity  which  came  at  last  and  the  capture  of  the 
Oaspce  was  planned  and  accomplished.  Rewards  were 
offered  for  the  apprehension  of  the  perpetrators  of  this 
deed,  but  without  effect.  Some  of  Rhode  Island's  most 
honored  citizens  were  engaged  in  the  affair  and  some  of  the 
younger  participants  are  said  to  have  boasted  of  the  deed 
before  the  smoke  from  the  burning  vessel  had  ceased  to 
darken  the  sky.  The  capture  of  the  Gaspee  in  June,  1772, 
was  the  first  bold  blow,  in  all  the  colonies  for  freedom. 
There  was  shed  the  first  blood  in  the  war  for  Independence. 
The  Revolution  had  begun. 

Then  followed  resolutions  from  Virginia  that  all  the 
towns  should  unite  for  mutual  protection.  Rhode  Island 
went  a  step  farther  and  proposed  a  continental  congress, 
and  thus  has  the  distinguished  honor  of  making  the  first 
explicit  movement  for  a  general  congress,  and  a  few  weeks 
later  she  was  the  first  to  appoint  delegates  to  this  congress. 

The  "Boston  Port  Bill"  followed,  and  Massachusetts 
records  tell  of  the  money  and  supplies  sent  from  Rhode 
Island  to  Boston 's  suffering  people.  England  ordered  that 
no  more  arms  were  to  be  sent  to  America.  Rhode  Island 
began  at  once  to  manufacture  fire  arms.  Sixty  heavy  can- 
non were  cast,  and  home-made  muskets  were  furnished  to 
the  chartered  military  companies.  "When  the  day  arrived 
upon  which  Congress  had  decreed  that  the  use  of  tea  should 
be  suspended,  three  hundred  pounds  of  tea  were  burned 
in  Market  Square,  Providence,  while  the  "Sons  of  Liberty" 
went  through  the  town  with  a  pot  of  black  paint  and  a 
paint-brush  and  painted  out  the  word  "Tea"  on  every 


166  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

sign-board.  This  was  February  1,  1775.  The  fight  at  Lex- 
ington followed  on  the  19th  of  April.  Two  weeks  after 
this  battle  the  Rhode  Island  assembly  suspended  Gov 
Walton,  the  last  colonial  governor  of  Rhode  Island.  He 
repeatedly  asked  to  be  restored  and  was  as  often  refused. 
At  the  end  of  six  months  he  was  deposed.  This  was  a  bold 
act,  but  men  who  could  attack  and  capture  a  man-of-war 
were  not  afraid  to  depose  from  office  one  single  man  who 
was  resolved  to  destroy  them. 

The  British  war-ship  Rose  was  a  constant  menace  to  the 
vessels  in  Rhode  Island  waters.  Altercations  ensued.  Cap- 
tain Abraham  Whipple,  who  headed  the  expedition  to  burn 
the  Gaspee,  discharged  the  first  gun  at  any  part  of  the 
British  navy  in  the  American  Revolution.  Two  armed 
vessels  were  ordered  for  the  protection  of  Rhode  Island 
waters ;  and  this  was  the  beginning  of  the  American  navy. 

Passing  over  much  of  interest  we  come  to  the  last  im- 
portant act  of  Rhode  Island  colonial  assembly:  an  act  to 
abjure  allegiance  to  the  British  crown.  It  was  a  declara- 
tion of  independence  and  it  was  made  on  May  4,  1776,  just 
two  months  before  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  signed 
at  Philadelphia.  This  act  closed  the  colonial  period  and 
established  Rhode  Island  as  an  independent  state.  The 
records  of  the  assembly  had  always  closed  with  "God  save 
the  King!"  This  was  changed  to  "God  save  the  United 
Colonies!"  The  smallest  of  the  colonies  had  defied  the 
empire  of  Great  Britain  and  declared  herself  an  independ- 
ent state ! 

Dark  days  followed.  The  British  army  occupied  New- 
port. By  command  of  congress,  Rhode  Island  had  sent  her 
two  battalions  to  New  York,  thus  rendering  herself  defense- 
less. The  militia  was  organized  to  protect  the  sea-coast. 
I  may  not  linger  to  tell  of  the  capture  of  Gen.  Prescott ;  of 
the  unsuccessful  attempt  to  dislodge  the  British,  nor  of  the 
battle  of  Rhode  Island,  in  which  Col.  Christopher  Greene 
with  his  famous  regiment  of  blacks  distinguished  himself, 
and  which  Lafayette  afterwards  declared  was  the  best- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  167 

planned  battle  of  the  war.  For  three  years  the  English 
army  held  this  fair  island  and  left  it  a  scene  of  desolation. 
Newport  never  recovered.  Her  commerce  was  destroyed. 
Her  ships  never  returned. 

Meanwhile  momentous  events  were  occurring  at  the  seat 
of  war.  Philadelphia  was  threatened  and  the  continental 
congress  had  been  moved  to  Baltimore.  Washington,  with 
less  than  twenty-three  hundred  men,  recrossed  the  Dele- 
ware  at  night.  The  men  he  placed  in  two  divisions,  one 
under  General  Greene,  the  other  under  Gen.  Sullivan,  and 
successfully  attacked  the  Hessians  at  Trenton  capturing 
nine  hundred  prisoners  (Dec.  26th,  1776). 

Washington  recrossed  the  Delaware  into  Pennsylvania 
with  his  prisoners  and  spoils  that  very  night.  On  January 
1st,  1777,  with  5,000  men  he  again  crossed  the  Delaware  and 
took  post  at  Trenton.  The  next  day  Cornwalli's  appeared 
before  Washington's  position  with  a  much  larger  forces. 
Only  a  creek  separated  the  two  armies.  The  Rhode  Island 
brigade  distinguished  itself  at  the  successful  holding  of  the 
bridge  and  received  the  thanks  of  Washington.  That  night 
Washington  withdrew,  leaving  his  camp  fires  burning. 
Next  morning,  January  3rd,  1777,  Cornwallis  was  amazed 
to  find  Washington  gone  and  still  more  astaunded,  as  he 
heard  in  the  direction  of  Princeton  the  guns  of  the  Ameri- 
cans, who  won  that  day  another  decisive  victory. 

We  must  not  dwell  upon  the  record  of  Gen.  Nathaniel 
Greene.  His  campaign  in  South  Carolina  was  brilliant. 
He  has  been  called  the  saviour  of  the  South.  It  was  he,  a 
Rhode  Island  general,  who,  because  of  his  military  skill, 
stood  second  only  to  Washington. 

At  the  closing  event  of  the  war,  the  siege  of  Yorktown, 
a  Rhode  Island  regiment  under  Capt.  Stephen  Olney,  head- 
ed the  advancing  column.  Sword  in  hand  the  leaders  broke 
through  the  first  obstructions.  Some  of  the  eager  assail- 
ants entered  the  ditch.  Among  these  was  Capt.  Olney  who, 
as  soon  as  a  few  of  his  men  collected,  forced  his  way  be- 
tween the  palisades,  leaped  upon  the  parapet  and  called  in 


168  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

a  voice  that  rose  above  the  din  of  battle  "Capt.  Olney's 
company  form  here!"  A  gunshot  wound  in  the  arm,  a 
bayonet  thrust  in  the  thigh  and  a  terrible  wound  in  the 
abdomen  which  he  was  obliged  to  cover  with  one  hand, 
while  he  parried  the  bayonets  with  the  other,  answered 
the  defiant  shout.  Capt.  Olney  was  borne  from  the  field, 
but  not  until  he  had  given  the  direction  to  "form  in 
order."  In  ten  minutes  after  the  first  fire  the  fort  was 
taken.  Three  days  later  Cornwallis  accepted  terms  of  sur- 
render, which  were  formally  carried  out  on  October  19th, 
1781.  The  war  was  over.  The  gallantry  of  Olney  was  lauded 
by  Lafayette  in  general  orders  and  more  handsomely  recog- 
nized in  his  correspondence.  But  the  historian,  thus  far, 
has  failed  to  record  the  fact,  noted  by  Arnold,  that  the 
first  sword  that  flashed  in  triumph  above  the  captured 
heights  of  Yorktown  was  a  Rhode  Island  Sword! — ANNA 
B.  MANCHESTER  in  American  Monthly  Magazine. 


GEORGIA  AND  HER  HEROES  IN  THE 
REVOLUTION. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution  Georgia  was  the 
youngest  of  the  colonies.  Although  there  had  been  some 
unsatisfactory  relations  with  the  mother  country,  there 
had  been  no  unfriendly  relations  until  the  passage  of  the 
famous  Stamp  Act.  On  account  of  the  liberal  laws  granted 
by  England  and  the  fatherly  care  of  General  James  Ogle- 
thorpe,  the  Colony  of  Georgia  had  least  cause  to  rebel. 
But  she  could  not  stand  aside  and  see  her  sister  colonies 
persecuted  without  protesting. 

In  September,  1769,  a  meeting  of  merchants  in  Savan- 
nah protested  against  the  Stamp  Act.  Jonathan  Bryan 
presided  over  this  meeting,  and  was  asked  by  the  royal 
governor,  Sir  James  Wright,  to  resign  his  seat  in  the 
governor's  council  for  having  done  so.  About  the  same 
time  Noble  W.  Jones  was  elected  Speaker  of  the  Assembly. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  169 

Governor  Wright  refused  to  sanction  the  choice  because 
Noble  W.  Jones  was  a  Liberty  Boy.  These  two  acts  of  the 
governor  angered  the  people  and  made  them  more  deter- 
mined to  resist.  Noble  W.  Jones  has  been  called  "the 
morning  star  of  liberty, ' '  on  account  of  his  activity  in  the 
cause  of  liberty  at  this  time.  A  band  of  patriots  met  in 
August,  1774,  and  condemned  the  Boston  Port  Bill.  Six 
hundred  barrels  of  rice  were  purchased  and  sent  to  the 
suffering  people  of  Boston. 

About  the  same  time  a  Provincial  Congress  was  called 
to  choose  delegates  to  the  first  Continental  Congress  to 
meet  soon  in  Philadelphia,  but  through  the  activity  of  the 
royal  governor,  only  five  of  the  twelve  parishes  were  repre- 
sented. No  representatives  were  sent  because  this  meeting 
did  not  represent  a  majority  of  the  people.  St.  John's 
parish,  the  hotbed  of  the  rebellion,  sent  Lyman  Hall  to 
represent  that  parish  alone  in  the  Continental  Congress. 
On  account  of  the  patriotic  and  independent  spirit  of  its 
people,  and  this  prompt  and  courageous  movement,  the 
legislature  in  after  years  conferred  the  name  of  Liberty 
County  011  the  consolidated  parishes  of  St.  John,  St. 
Andrew  and  St.  James. 

After  the  news  of  Lexington  arrived  great  excitement 
prevailed.  On  the  night  of  May  1,  1775,  a  party  of  six  men 
led  by  Joseph  Habersham  broke  open  the  powder  magazine 
and  took  out  all  the  ammunition.  Some  of  this  powder 
was  sent  to  Massachusetts  and  used  at  the  Battle  of  Bunker 
Hill.  The  people  proceeded  to  take  charge  of  the  govern- 
ment. A  Council  of  Safety  and  Provincial  Assembly  were 
elected. 

The  patriots  captured  a  British  schooner  containing 
fourteen  thousand  barrels  of  powder.  This  captured 
schooner  was  the  first  ship  to  be  commissioned  by  the 
American  nation.  The  Council  of  Safety  ordered  the 
arrest  of  Governor  Wright.  Joseph  Habersham  with  six 
men  easily  did  this,  but  the  governor  soon  escaped.  The 
incident  is  famous  because  John  Milledge  and  Edward 


170  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Telfair,  known  as  two  of  the  best  loved  of  Georgia  gover- 
nors in  after  years,  were  members  of  this  brave  band. 
Joseph  Habersham  himself  became  famous  afterwards,  be- 
ing Postmaster-General  in  Washington 's  cabinet. 

While  these  events  were  taking  place  the  second  Con- 
tinental Congress  was  framing  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence. George  Walton,  Button  Gwinnett,  and  Lyman 
Hall  signed  that  great  document  for  Georgia.  Button 
Gwinnett  did  not  live  to  see  Georgia's  independence  estab- 
lished, but  Lyman  Hall  and  George  Walton  saw  her  take 
her  place  in  the  union.  They  were  honored  with  the  high- 
est offices  of  the  state.  There  were  many  other  men  who 
became  famous  on  account  of  their  activities  for  the  cause 
of  liberty  at  this  time.  Chief  among  these  were  Lachlan 
Mclntosh,  of  whom  Washington  said,  "I  esteem  him  an 
officer  of  great  merit  and  worth:"  Archibald  Bulloch, 
James  Jackson,  David  Emanuel,  John  Adam  Treutlen, 
Samuel  Elbert,  John  Baker,  John  Wereat,  and  John 
Houston. 

With  the  exception  of  a  few  unsuccessful  expeditions 
against  Florida  there  was  no  fighting  in  Georgia  until 
December,  1778.  The  people  hoped  that  the  war  would  be 
fought  elsewhere,  but  such  was  not  to  be.  General  Prevost 
who  commanded  the  British  in  Florida  was  ordered  to 
invade  Georgia  from  the  South.  Colonel  Campbell  was 
sent  by  General  Howe  with  three  thousand  five  hundred 
troops  to  attack  Savannah.  Colonel  Campbell  landed 
December  27,  1778,  and  by  a  skillful  flank  movement 
drove  a  small  army  of  nine  hundred  patriots  from  their 
intrenchments  near  Savannah  and  pursued  them  with  such 
terrible  slaughter  that  barely  four  hundred  escaped.  Many 
were  run  down  with  the  bayonet  in  the  streets  of  Savan- 
nah, almost  within  sight  of  their  families.  James  Jackson 
and  John  Milledge,  both  of  whom  were  afterward  governor 
of  Georgia,  were  among  the  numbe.  that  escaped  and 
while  going  through  South  Carolina  to  join  General 
Lincoln's  army  they  were  arrested  by  the  Americans  who 


CARPENTER'S    HALL,    PHILADELPHIA,    PA. 
Chestnut,  Between  3d  and  4th  Streets. 

The   First    Continental    Congress    Assembled    Here 
September  5,   1774, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  171 

thought  they  were  English  spies.  Preparations  were  made 
for  hanging  them  when  an  American  officer  came  up  who 
recognized  them,  and  they  were  set  free.  It  was  certainly 
a  blessing  to  the  state  that  these  men  did  not  suffer  an 
ignorinous  death  for  they  rendered  invaluable  service  in 
after  years  by  fighting  the  Yazoo  Fraud. 

The  force  of  British  from  Florida  captured  Fort  Morris 
and  united  with  the  British  force  at  Savannah.  This  com- 
bined force  pressed  on  toward  Augusta.  Ebenezer  was 
captured.  A  force  of  patriots  under  the  command  of 
Colonels  John  Twiggs,  Benjamin  and  "William  Few,  de- 
feated the  British  advance  guard  under  the  notorious 
Tories,  Browne,  and  McGirth,  but  the  Americans'  efforts 
were  in  vain  and  Augusta  fell  without  a  struggle. 

The  cause  of  liberty  was  crushed  for  a  while.  The  royal 
governor  was  restored  to  power,  England  could  say  that 
she  had  conquered  one  of  her  rebellious  colonies  at  least. 
But  the  spirit  of  liberty  was  not  dead.  Colonels  Elijah 
Clarke  and  John  Dooly  of  Georgia,  with  Pickens  of  South 
Carolina,  nearly  annihilated  a  band  of  plundering  Tories 
at  Kettle  Creek.  This  aroused  the  Georgians  with  renewed 
vigor.  The  British  hearing  that  a  French  fleet  was  coming 
to  attack  Savannah,  began  to  withdraw  to  that  place.  The 
British  outpost  at  Sunbury  was  ordered  to  retreat  to 
Savannah.  Colonel  White  with  six  men  captured  the  entire 
garrison  of  one  hundred  and  forty  men  through  strategy. 

When  the  French  fleet  under  Count  d'Estaing  arrived, 
General  Lincoln  brought  the  Continental  Army  to  assist 
in  the  recapture  of  the  city.  The  combined  French  and 
American  force  beseiged  the  city  for  three  weeks  all  in  vain. 
Finally  it  was  decided  to  attempt  to  take  the  place  by 
assault  which  resulted  disastrously  to  the  American  cause. 
The  French  and  Americans  were  driven  back  having  lost 
over  eleven  hundred  men,  among  them  the  Polish  patriot, 
Pulaski,  and  Sergeant  Jasper,  the  hero  of  Fort  Moultrie. 
The  French  fleet  sailed  away  and  General  Lincoln  retreated 


172  REVOLUTIONARY  EEADER 

to  Charleston  leaving  Georgia  once  more  completely  in  the 
hands  of  the  British. 

Tories  went  through  the  state  committing  all  kinds  of 
outrages.  Colonel  John  Dooly  was  murdered  in  the  presence 
of  his  family  by  a  band  of  Tories.  The  next  day  the  same 
murderous  Tories  visited  Nancy  Hart,  a  friend  of  Colonel 
John  Dooly.  Nancy  overheard  them  talking  of  the  deed 
and  she  began  to  think  of  vengeance.  She  slid  several  of 
their  guns  through  the  cracks  of  the  log  cabin  before  the 
Tories  saw  her.  When  the  Tories  noticed  her  she  pointed 
one  toward  them.  One  Tory  advanced  toward  her  and 
was  shot  down.  The  others  afraid,  dared  not  move.  Mean- 
while Nancy's  daughter  signaled  for  Nancy's  husband  who 
was  in  command  of  a  band  of  patriots  that  carried  on 
guerilla  warfare  in  the  neighborhood  and  on  their  arrival 
the  Tories  were  taken  out  and  hung.  Nancy  Hart  is  the 
only  woman  for  whom  a  county  has  been  named  in  Georgia. 

After  the  fall  of  Charleston  in  1780,  Augusta  was  again 
occupied  by  the  British.  Colonel  Elijah  Clarke  collected 
a  force  to  recapture  the  place.  His  first  attempt  was  un- 
successful September  14-18,  1780.  He  retreated  leaving 
thirty  wounded  men  behind.  The  cruel  Colonel  Browne 
hung  thirteen  and.  turned  the  others  over  to  his  Indian  allies 
to  be  tortured.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  John  Clarke,  son 
of  Elijah  Clarke,  was  fighting  with  his  father  at  this  battle 
although  he  was  only  sixteen  years  old.  He  afterwards 
became  governor  of  Georgia  and  founder  of  the  Clarke 
party  in  Georgia.  "Light  Horse  Harry"  Lee,  father  of 
Robert  E.  Lee,  and  General  Pickens  brought  reinforce- 
ments to  Clarke  and  the  combined  force  again  besieged 
Augusta  with  renewed  vigor  May  15th,  June  5th,  1781. 
After  much  hard  fighting  Colonel  Browne  was  forced  to 
surrender  June  5th,  1781.  On  account  of  his  cruelties  he 
had  to  be  protected  from  violence  by  a  special  escort. 

The  British  were  gradually  forced  back  into  Savannah. 
When  Cornwallis  surrendered,  only  four  places  were  in 
their  possession  in  Georgia.  In  January,  1782,  "Mad" 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  173 

Anthony  Wayne  came  to  Georgia  to  drive  the  British  out. 
He  routed  Colonel  Browne,  who  had  collected  a  band  of 
Tories  and  Indians  at  Ogeechee  Ferry,  after  his  exchange. 
The  British  were  hemmed  in  Savannah.  Finally  in  May, 
1782,  orders  came  to  the  royal  governor  from  the  king  to 
surrender  Savannah  and  return  to  England.  Major  James 
Jackson  was  selected  by  General  Wayne  to  receive  the  keys 
of  the  city.  They  were  formally  presented  by  Governor 
Wright  and  Major  Jackson  marched  in  at  the  head  of  his 
troops.  The  city  was  again  in  the  hands  of  the  state  after 
having  been  occupied  by  the  British  for  three  and  one-half 
years.  The  great  struggle  was  over.  Georgia  was  weakest 
of  the  colonies  and  none  had  felt  the  hard  hand  of  war  any 
more  than  she.  The  heroic  deeds  of  her  sons  during  that 
awful  struggle  are  sources  of  pride  to  every  true  Georgian. 
— Prize  Essay  by  JULIUS  MILTON,  Nathanial  Abney 
Chapter. 


UNITED  STATES  TREASURY  SEAL. 

The  design  of  the  seal  of  the  treasury  of  the  United 
States  in  all  its  essential  features  is  older  than  the  national 
government.  From  the  days  of  the  confederation  of  the 
colonies  down  through  the  history  of  the  republic  the  Latin 
motto  on  the  seal  has  been  "The  Seal  of  the  Treasury  of 
North  America."  These  facts  have  just  been  developed, 
says  the  Newark  News,  by  an  investigation  by  the  treasury 
department  tracing  the  history  of  the  seal.  The  Continen- 
tal Congress  ordered  its  construction  Sept.  26,  1778,  ap- 
pointing John  Witherspoon,  Gouverno  Morris  and  R.  H. 
Lee  a  committee  on  design.  There  is  no  record  of  the 
report  of  the  committee,  but  impressions  of  the  seal  have 
been  found  as  early  as  1782. 

The  original  seal  was  continued  in  use  until  1849,  when, 
worn  out,  it  was  replaced  by  a  new  cut,  made  by  Edward 
Stabler  of  Montgomery  county,  Md.  He  was  directed  to 
make  a  facsimile  of  the  old  seal,  but  there  were  some  neg- 


174  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

ligible  differences.  The  symbols,  however,  are  the  same. 
There  are  the  13  stars,  representing  the  13  colonies;  the 
scales  as  the  emblem  of  justice  and  keys,  in  secular  heraldry 
denoting  an  office  of  state. 


WILLIE  WAS  SAVED. 

We  had  a  Sane  Fourth — I  was  not 
Allowed  to  fire  a  single  shot; 
If  I'd  'a  made  a  cracker  pop 
I'd  a'  been  hauled  in  by  th'  cop. 
If  me  or  any  of  th'  boys 
Had  dared  to  make  a  bit  o'  noise 
They  would  'a  slapped  us  all  in  jail 
An'  held  us  there  till  we  gave  bail, 
An'  so  our  Fourth,  I  will  explain 
Was  absolutely  safe  an'  sane. 

Pa's  feelin'  better — 't  least  no  worse, 
I  heard  him  tell  th'  new  trained  nurse, 
He  played  golf  nearly  all  th'  day 
With  Mister  Jones  and  Mister  Shea 
Until  'bout  half  past  three  o'clock 
An'  then  he  had  an  awful  shock, 
Th'  sun  was  boilin'  hot,  an'  he 
Was  playin'  hard  as  hard  could  be, 
An'  he  got  sunstruck,  but  he'll  be 
Up  in  two  weeks,  or  mebbe  three. 

Ma's  conshus  now.    They  think  her  arm 
Ain't  re'lly  suffered  serious  harm, 
Except  it's  broke.    An'  where  her  face 
Got  cut  will  heal  without  a  trace, 
Ma  went  out  ridin'  with  th'  Greens 
"To  view  th'  restful  country  scenes." 
A  tire  blew  up  an'  they  upset — 
They  didn't  have  no  landin'  net! 
Th'  doctor  says  that  sleep  an'  rest 
For  her  will  prob'ly  be  th'  best. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  175 

My  sister's  better,  too,  although 

They  had  to  work  an  hour  or  so 

To  bring  her  to — she  purt'  near  drowned 

An'  looked  like  dead  when  she  was  found. 

She  went  to  row  with  Mr.  Groke 

An'  he — he  says  'twas  for  a  joke — 

He  rocked  th'  boat  an'  they  fell  out, 

An'  people  run  from  miles  about 

To  save  their  lives.     She  was  a  sight 

When  they  brought  her  back  home  last  night. 

I  wasn't  hurt  though,  I'll  explain, 
Because  my  Fourth  was  Safe  an'  Sane. 
— Wilbur  D.  Nesbit. 


VIRGINIA  REVOLUTIONARY  FORTS. 
BY  MRS.  MARY  C.  BELL  CLAYTON. 

In  a  mental  vision  of  that  galaxy  of  stars  which  em- 
blazon our  national  flag,  that  bright  constellation  the 
thirteen  original  states,  we  pause  to  select  the  one  star 
which  shines  with  purest  ray  serene,  and  as  we  gaze  upon 
the  grand  pageant  from  New  Hampshire  to  Georgia  and 
recall  the  mighty  things  achieved  by  the  self-sacrificing 
devotion  of  their  illustrious  statesmen  and  generals  with 
the  united  efforts  of  every  patriot,  it  is  with  admiration  for 
all  that  we  point  with  reverence  to  that  star  which  stands 
for  her  who  cradled  the  nation,  that  infant  colony  at 
Jamestown  in  Virginia,  who  made  defense  first  against  the 
tomahawk  of  the  Indians,  growing  stronger  and  stronger 
with  an  innate  love  for  truth  and  justice,  'till  we  hear  the 
cry  "Give  me  liberty  or  give  me  death,"  which  resounded 
from  the  White  Mountains  of  New  Hampshire  to  the  sunny 
lands  of  Georgia,  and  is  echoed  there  in  her  legend,  "Wis- 
dom, justice  and  moderation." 

You,  our  sisters,  the  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolu- 
tion of  South  Carolina,  whose  state  is  strong  in  state  craft 


176  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

and  brave  as  the  bravest,  and  whose  star  shines  as  a  beacon 
light  in  the  constellation  of  states,  to  those  who  would 
infringe  on  the  rights  of  others,  you  call  to  us,  in  your 
study  of  the  defences  of  the  revolutionary  period,  to  show 
our  "Landmarks,"  the  signs  of  our  ancestor's  devotion  to 
patriotism,  that  you  with  us,  may  reverence  their  loyalty 
and  with  pride  cherish  every  evidence  of  their  struggle  for 
liberty,  remembering  always  that  "he  who  builded  the 
house  is  greater  than  the  house."  We  would  tell  you  of 
facts  in  the  military  annals  of  Virginia,  deeds  of  prowess, 
more  enduring  than  memorials  of  stone,  which  have  become 
the  sacred  heritage  of  us  all,  but  to  these,  at  this  time,  our 
attention  is  not  to  be  given.  And  if  we  fail  to  show  but  a 
few  of  her  strongholds,  you  must  remember  that  within 
the  present  bounds  of  Virginia  there  were  few  important 
positions  held  against  assault,  and  her  "Northwestern 
Territory"  was  far  away  from  the  main  contest.  Her 
troops  were  kept  moving  from  place  to  place,  their  defences 
often  were  not  forts,  but  earthworks,  hastily  constructed, 
often  trees,  houses,  fences,  etc.  For  instance  the  first 
revolutionary  battle  fought  on  Virginia  soil  was  at  Hamp- 
ton, a  little  town  between  the  York  and  James  rivers. 

'•The  Virginians  sunk  obstacles  in  the  water  for  protection, 
but  during  the  night  the  British  destroyed  them  and  turned  their 
guns  upon  the  town.  In  this  fight  we  had  no  fire-arms  but  rifles 
to  oppose  the  cannons  of  the  English,  so  when  the  attack  began 
the  riflemen  had  to  conceal  themselves  behind  such  meagre  de- 
fences as  I  have  mentioned,  houses,  fences,  trees,  etc.,  opening 
fire  upon  the  British  vessels.  The  men  at  the  guns  were  killed  and 
not  a  sailor  touched  a  sail  without  being  shot.  Confusion  was 
upon  the  British  decks,  and  in  dismay  they  tried  to  draw  off  and 
make  escape  into  the  bay,  but  without  success;  some  of  the 
vessels  were  captured,  many  men  were  taken  prisoners,  and  the 
whole  fleet  would  have  been  captured  but  for  the  report  that  a 
large  body  of  the  British  were  advancing  from  another  direction." 

Small  was  the  defense,  but  great  was  the  result  at  this 
first  battle  of  the  Revolution  on  Virginia  soil. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  177 

THE  FORT  AT  GREAT  BRIDGE. 

"After  the  attack  on  Hampton,  Lord  Dunmore  determined 
to  make  an  assault  on  Norfolk.  He  erected  a  fort  at  Great 
Bridge  where  it  crosses  a  branch  of  the  Elizabeth  river.  This 
bridge  was  of  importansce  as  it  commanded  the  entrance  of 
Norfolk.  The  Virginians  held  a  small  village  near  by.  At  these 
points  the  armies  were  encamped  for  several  days  ready  for  the 
moment  to  begin  the  fight.  In  order  to  precipitate  a  contest,  the 
Virginians  had  recourse  to  a  stratagem.  A  negro  boy  belonging 
to  Major  Marshall  was  sent  to  Lord  Dunmore.  He  represented 
himself  as  a  deserter  and  reported  that  the  Virginians  had  only 
three  hundred  'shirt  men/  a  term  used  to  distinguish  the  patriot, 
whose  only  uniform  was  a  graceful  hunting  shirt,  which  after- 
wards became  so  celebrated  in  the  Revolution.  Believing  the 
story,  Lord  Dunmore  gave  vent  to  his  exultation,  as  he  thought  he 
saw  before  him  the  opportunity  of  wreaking  his  vengeance  upon 
the  Virginians.  He  mustered  his  whole  force  and  gave  the  order 
for  marching  out  in  the  night  and  forcing  the  breastworks  of 
his  hated  foe.  In  order  to  stimulate  his  troops  to  desperate 
deeds,  he  told  them  that  the  Virginians  were  no  better  than 
savages,  and  were  wanting  in  courage  and  determination,  that  in 
all  probability  they  would  not  stand  fire  at  all,  but  if  by  any 
chance  they  were  permitted  to  triumph,  the  English  need  expect 
no  quarter,  and  they  would  be  scalped  according  to  the  rules  of 
savage  warfare.  Early  in  the  morning  of  December  9th,  1775, 
the  Virginians  beheld  the  enemy  advancing  towards  their  breast- 
works. They  were  commanded  by  Capt.  Fordyce,  a  brave  officer, 
Waving  his  cap  over  his  head,  he  led  his  men  in  the  face  of  a 
terrible  fire,  which  ran  along  the  American  line,  directly  up  to  thfe 
breastworks.  He  received  a  shot  in  the  knee  and  fell  forward, 
but  jumping  up  as  if  he  had  only  stumbled,  in  a  moment  he  fell 
again  pierced  by  fourteen  bullets.  His  death  threw  everything 
into  confusion.  The  next  officer  was  mortally  wounded,  other 
officers  were  prostrate  with  wounds,  and  many  privates  had  fallen. 
In  this  desperate  situation  a  retreat  towards  their  fort  at  Norfolk 
was  the  only  resource  left  to  the  English.  They  were  not  allowed 
to  escape  without  a  vigorous  pursuit.  It  was  conducted  by 
brave  Col.  Stevens,  who  captured  many  prisoners  and  ten  pieces 
of  cannon.  The  loss  of  the  British  was  one  hundred  and  two 
killed  and  wounded.  The  only  damage  to  our  men  was  a  wound 
in  the  finger  of  one  of  them." 


178  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

The  British  had  built  a  fort  for  their  defence,  the  Vir- 
ginians had  breastworks. 

FORT  NELSON. 

"During  the  Revolution  Sovereign  Virginia  erected  Fort  Nel- 
son to  resist  Lord  Dunmore,  should  he  ever  attempt  to  return  to 
the  harbor  of  Norfolk  and  Portsmouth.  It  was  named  for  the 
patriot  Governor  Nelson,  who  gave  his  private  fortune  to  aid  the 
credit  of  Virginia,  and  risked  his  life  and  sacrificed  his  health  on 
the  battlefields  of  the  American  Republic.  On  account  of  its 
location  it  was  never  the  scene  of  any  bloody  battle,  but  like  the 
'Old  Guard,'  it  was  held  in  reserve  for  the  emergencies  of  war. 
On  the  9th  of  May,  1779,  a  great  British  fleet,  under  Admiral  Sir 
George  Collier  entered  Hampton  Roads,  sailed  up  Elizabeth  river, 
and  landed  three  thousand  royal  soldiers  under  General  Matthews 
in  Norfolk  County,  where  Fort  Norfolk  now  stands,  to  flank  this 
fortification  and  capture  its  garrison  composed  of  only  150  sol- 
diers. Maj.  Matthews,  the  American  commander,  frustrated  the 
designs  of  the  British  general  by  evacuating  the  fort,  and  retired 
to  the  northward.  On  the  llth  of  May,  the  British  took  posses- 
sion of  the  two  towns,  and  gave  free  hand  to  pillage  and  destruc- 
tion. Sir  George  Collier,  after  satisfying  his  wrath  sailed  back 
to  New  York.  Varying  fortunes  befell  Fort  Nelson  during  the 
remainder  of  the  war  until  the  evacuation  by  Benedict  Arnold, 
after  which  no  British  grenadier  ever  paced  its  ramparts.  After 
the  close  of  the  Revolution,  it  was  rebuilt  and  for  many  years 
was  garrisoned  by  regular  soldiers  of  the  United  States;  but 
since,  abandoned  as  a  fortification,  it  has  been  a  beautiful  park 
and  a  home  for  sick  officers  and  sailors  of  our  navy. 

"The  garrison  of  Fort  Nelson,  under  the  glorious  stars  and 
stripes,  on  the  22nd  of  June,  1813,  stood  to  their  shotted  guns,  to 
meet  the  British  invaders,  who  were  defeated  at  Crany  Island, 
by  our  Capt.  Arthur  Emerson  and  other  gallant  heroes.  Here 
thousands  of  soldiers  marched  in  response  to  the  call  of  Virginia 
in  1861." 

In  the  naval  park  at  Portsmouth,  the  site  of  Fort  Nel- 
son, there  is  a  monument  whose  granite  body  embraces  a 
real  Revolutionary  cannon.  This  gun  was  selected  from 
a  number  of  guns  known  to  be  of  the  period  of  the  Ameri- 
can Revolution.  It  is  believed  that  one,  at  least,  of  these 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  179 

was  mounted  at  Crany  Island  for  the  defense  of  Ports- 
mouth and  Norfolk.  The  honor  of  erecting  this  monument 
is  due  to  the  ladies  of  the  Fort  Nelson  Chapter  of  the 
Daughters  of  the  American  Revolution  and  to  Admiral  P. 
F.  Harrington  of  the  United  States  Navy,  and  also  Medical 
Director  R.  C.  Person  of  the  navy.  It  is  said  that  with 
proper  care  this  gun  will  last  centuries  and  ' '  It  will  carry 
down  to  distant  generations  a  memorial  of  the  patriots  of 
the  American  Revolution,  a  mark  of  the  formation  of  a 
nation  and  the  token  of  the  later  patriots,  the  Daughters 
of  the  American  Revolution,  to  whose  efforts  is  due  this 
important  national  service  to  which  the  gun  has  been 
dedicated. ' ' 

After  these  first  assaults,  for  about  three  years  of  the 
war,  there  was  almost  no  fighting  in  Virginia,  but  during 
that  term  she  was  furnishing  her  full  quota  of  men,  money 
and  inspiration  to  the  cause,  with  devoted  loyalty,  assisting 
in  the  north  and  in  the  south,  wherever  an  attack  was  made. 
Directing  her  attention  to  the  main  army  she  built  no  de- 
fences of  any  importance  on  her  own  territory  east  of  the 
Alleghanies.  "The  British  success  in  the  north  and  fol- 
lowed by  still  more  decided  victories  in  the  south.  Thus 
later  the  English  began  to  look  forward,  with  certainty,  to 
the  conquest  of  the  entire  country,  and  as  Virginia  was 
regarded  as  the  heart  of  the  rebellion,  it  was  decided  to 
carry  their  victorious  arms  into  the  state,  as  the  surest  way 
of  bringing  the  war  to  a  speedy  conclusion."  We  had  no 
time,  then,  for  building  forts,  and  when  we  recall  the 
traitor  Arnold's  advance  on  Richmond,  with  the  two  days 
he  spent  there  destroying  public  and  private  property — 
his  taking  of  Petersburg,  burning  the  tobacco  and  vessels 
lying  at  the  wharves,  with  Col.  Tarleton's  raids,  scouring 
the  country  of  every  thing;  in  fact  all  of  Cornwallis' 
reign  of  terror,  which  was  soon  to  end  in  that  imposing 
scene  at  Yorktown,  we  realize  truly  that  ' '  the  battle  is  not 
to  the  strong,  nor  the  race  to  the  swift,"  but  that  a 
country's  bulwark  often  are  not  forts  and  strong  towers, 


180  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

but  her  courageous  heart,  and  her  staunch  friends,  such 
men  as  Lafayette,  De  Rochambeau,  De  Grasse  and  Steuben, 
who  with  Washington,  led  the  allied  Americans  and  French 
forces  at  Yorktown,  and  besieged  the  British  fortifica- 
tion, the  surrender  of  which  virtually  closed  the  Revolu- 
tionary War  on  the  19th  of  October,  1781.  The  place  is 
sacred,  their  devotion  reverenced. 

FORTS  OP  THE  NORTHWESTERN  TERRITORY,  KASKASKIA,  CAHOKIA 
AND  VINCENNES. 

"While  the  communities  of  the  sea  coast  were  yet  in  a  fever 
heat  from  the  uprising  against  the  stamp  act,  the  first  explorers 
were  toiling  painfully  to  Kentucky,  and  the  first  settlers  were 
building  their  palisaded  hamlets  on  the  banks  of  the  Wautauga. 
The  year  that  saw  the  first  Continental  Congress  saw  also  the 
short  grim  tragedy  of  Lord  Duninore's  war.  The  battles  of  the 
Revolution  were  fought  while  Boone  and  his  comrades  were  laying 
the  foundation  of  their  Commonwealth.  Hitherto  the  two  chains 
of  events  had  been  only  remotely  connected,  but  in  1776,  the  year 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  the  struggle  between  the  king 
and  his  rebelb'ous  subjects  shook  the  whole  land  and  the  men  of 
the  western  border  were  drawn  headlong  into  the  full  current  of 
the  Revolutionary  war.  From  that  moment  our  politics  became 
national,  and  the  fate  of  each  portion  of  our  country  was  thence- 
forth in  some  sort  dependent  upon  the  welfare  of  every  other. 
Each  section  had  its  own  work  to  do;  the  east  won  independence 
while  the  west  began  to  conquer  the  continent,  yet  the  deeds  of 
each  were  of  vital  consequence  to  the  other.  The  Continentals 
gave  the  west  its  freedom,  and  took  in  return,  for  themselves  and 
their  children,  a  share  of  the  land  that  had  been  conquered  and 
held  by  the  scanty  bands  of  tall  backwoodsmen." 

Kentucky  had  been  settled  chiefly  through  Daniel 
Boone 's  instrumentality  in  the  year  that  saw  the  first 
fighting  of  the  Revolution,  and  had  been  added  to  Virginia 
by  the  strenuous  endeavorers  of  Major  George  Rogers 
Clark  of  Albermarle,  Virginia,  whose  far  seeing  and  ambi- 
tious soul  prompted  him  to  use  it  as  a  base  from  which  to 
conquer  the  vast  region  northwest  of  the  Ohio. ' '  The  country 
beyond  the  Ohio  was  not  like  Kentucky,  a  tenantless  and 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  181 

debatable  hunting  ground.  It  was  the  seat  of  powerful 
and  warlike  Indian  confederacies,  and  of  cluster  of  ancient 
French  hamlets  which  had  been  founded  generations  before 
Kentucky  pioneers  were  born.  It  also  contained  forts  that 
were  garrisoned  and  held  by  the  soldiers  of  the  British 
king. "  It  is  true  that  Virginia  claimed  this  territory  under 
the  original  grant  in  her  charter,  but  it  was  almost  an 
unknown  and  foreign  land,  and  could  only  be  held  by  force. 
Clark's  scheming  brain  and  bold  heart  had  long  been  plan- 
ning its  conquest.  He  looked  about  to  see  from  whence 
came  the  cause  of  the  Indian  atrocities  on  the  whole  Ameri- 
can frontier,  and  like  Washington  he  saw  that  those  Indian 
movements  were  impelled  by  some  outside  force.  He  dis- 
covered that  the  British  forts  of  Detroit,  Kaskaskia  and  St. 
Vincent  were  the  centers  from  which  the  Indians  obtained 
their  ammunition  and  arms  to  devastate  the  country.  He 
resolved  to  take  these  forts.  "He  knew  that  it  would  be 
impossible  to  raise  a  force  to  capture  these  forts  from  the 
scanty  garrisoned  forts  and  villages  of  Kentucky,  though 
he  knew  of  a  few  picked  men  peculiarly  suited  to  his  pur- 
pose, but  fully  realized  that  he  would  have  to  go  to  Vir- 
ginia for  the  body  of  his  forces.  Accordingly,  he  decided 
to  lay  the  case  before  Patrick  Henry,  the  governor  of  Vir- 
ginia. Henry's  ardent  soul  quickly  caught  the  flame  from 
Clark's  fiery  enthusiasm,  but  the  peril  of  sending  an  ex- 
pedition to  such  a  wild  and  distant  country  was  so  great, 
and  Virginia's  forces  so  exhausted  that  he  could  do  little 
beyond  lending  Clark  the  weight  of  his  name  and  influence. 
Finally  though,  Henry  authorized  him  to  raise  seven  com- 
panies, each  of  fifty  men,  who  were  to  act  as  militia,  and  to 
be  paid  as  such.  He  also  advanced  him  a  sum  of  twelve 
hundred  pounds  and  gave  him  an  order  on  the  authorities 
at  Pittsburg  for  boats,  supplies  and  ammunition;  while 
three  of  the  most  prominent  gentlemen  of  Virginia,  Thomas 
Jefferson,  George  Mason  and  George  Wythe,  agreed,  in 
writing,  to  do  their  part  to  induce  the  legislature  to  grant 
to  each  of  the  adventurers  three  hundred  acres  of  the  con- 


182  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

quered  land,  if  they  were  successful.  Clark  was  given  the 
commission  of  colonel  with  the  instruction  to  raise  his  men 
from  the  frontier  counties  west  of  the  Blue  Ridge,  so  as  not 
to  weaken  the  sea  coast  region  in  their  struggle  against  the 
British."  To  this  instruction  he  did  not  strictly  adhere. 
There  was  a  company  of  soldiers  from  Bedford  County, 
Virginia,  under  his  command,  a  list  of  whose  names  are  on 
our  county  records.  Two  of  these  are  connections  of  the 
mother  of  Mrs.  R.  B.  Clayton,  the  regent  of  the  Peaks  of 
Otter  Chapter  of  Virginia  Daughters,  which  facts  enhance 
our  pride  and  interest  in  the  capture  of  the  western  forts 
by  Colonel  Clark,  which  perhaps,  prevented  a  vast  and 
beautiful  region  of  our  country  from  being  a  part  of  a 
then  foreign  and  hostile  empire. 

THE  CAPTURE  OP  FORT  KASKASKIA. 

"Port  Kaskaskia,  an  old  French  fort  of  western  Illinois, 
situated  on  Kaskaskia  River,  and  garrisoned  by  the  British  was, 
at  the  time  of  its  capture  in  splendid  repair  with  a  well  drilled 
militia  and  spies  constantly  on  the  lookout.  Rochenblave,  the 
commandant  of  the  fort,  had  two  or  three  times  as  many  men  as 
Col.  Clark,  and  would  have  made  a  vigorous  fight  if  he  had  not 
been  taken  by  surprise.  Clark's  force  after  the  toil  and  hardships 
of  much  traveling  across  rivers  and  tangled  pathless  forests,  was 
much  reduced,  and  it  was  only  his  audacity  and  the  noiseless 
speed  of  his  movements,  that  gave  him  a  chance  of  success  with 
the  odds  so  heavily  against  him.  He  ferried  his  men  across  the 
stream  under  cover  of  darkness  and  profound  silence.  Inside  the 
forts,  lights  were  lit,  and  through  the  windows  came  the  sound  of 
violins.  The  officers  of  the  fort  had  given  a  ball,  the  young  men 
and  girls  were  dancing,  revelling  within,  while  the  sentinels  had 
left  their  posts.  One  of  the  men  whom  Clark  had  captured,  on 
his  approach  to  the  fort,  showed  him  a  postern  gate  by  the  river 
side,  through  which  he  entered  the  fort,  having  placed  his  men 
about  the  entrance.  Advancing  to  the  great  hall,  where  the  revel 
was  held  he  leaned  silently,  with  folded  arms,  against  the  door 
post,  looking  at  the  dancers.  An  Indian  lying  on  the  floor  of  the 
entry  suddenly  sprang  to  his  feet  uttering  the  unearthly  war 
whoop.  The  dancing  ceased,  the  women  screamed,  while  the  men 
ran  towards  the  door,  but  Clark  standing  unmoved  and  with 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  183 

unchanged  face,  grimly  bade  them  continue  their  dancing,  but  to 
remember  that  they  now  danced  under  Virginia  and  not  Great 
Britain.  At  the  same  time  his  men  seized  the  officers,  including 
the  commandant,  Rochenblave,  who  was  sent  a  prisoner  to  Wil- 
liamsburg,  Virginia." 

Among  his  papers  falling  into  the  hands  of  Colonel 
Clark,  were  the  instructions  which  he  had  from  time  to  time 
received  from  the  British  Governor  of  Quebec  and  Detroit, 
urging  him  to  stimulate  the  Indians  to  war  by  the  proffer 
of  large  bounties  for  the  scalps  of  the  Americans.  This 
shows  of  what  importance  the  capture  of  this  fort  was  at 
that  period,  a  defence  against  the  scalping  knife  of  the  In- 
dians as  well  as  the  power  of  the  British  tyrant. 

THE  CAPTURE  OF  COHOKIA  AND  VINCENNES. 

After  the  capture  of  Kaskaskia,  without  the  shedding 
of  a  drop  of  blood,  Clark  pushed  on  to  the  taking  of  fort 
Cohokia,  where  the  French,  as  soon  as  they  were  made  to 
know  that  France  had  acknowledged  the  independence  of 
America,  shouted  for  freedom  and  the  Americans.  Clark 
then  marched  to  fort  Vincennes  which,  without  the  firing  of 
a  gun,  surrendered,  and  the  garrison  took  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  Virginia  July  19th,  1778.  Very  soon  after  this 
the  British  under  Governor  Hamilton,  left  Detroit  and 
recaptured  Vincennes,  only  to  be  forced  by  Clark  to  sur- 
render it  a  second  time  in  February,  1779,  and  to  yield 
himself  a  prisoner  of  war.  The  taking  of  this  fort  the 
second  time  was  a  most  remarkable  achievement. 

"Clark  took,  without  artillery,  a  heavy  stockaded  fort,  pro- 
tected by  cannon  and  swivels  and  garrisoned  by  trained  soldiers 
Much  credit  belongs  to  Clark's  men  but  most  belongs  to  their, 
leader.  The  boldness  of  his  plan  and  the  resolute  skill  with  which 
he  followed  it  out,  his  perseverance  through  the  intense  hardship 
of  the  midwinter  march  of  two  hundred  miles,  through  swamps 
and  swollen  rivers,  with  lack  of  force,  the  address  with  which  he 
kept  the  French  and  Indians  neutral,  and  the  masterful  way  in 
which  he  controlled  his  own  men,  together  with  the  ability  and 
courage  he  displayed  in  the  actual  attack,  combined  to  make  his 


184  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

feat  the  most  memorable  of  all  the  deeds  done  west  of  the 
Alleghenies  in  the  Revolutionary  war.  It  was  likewise  the  most 
important  in  its  results,  for  had  he  been  defeated  in  the  capture 
of  these  forts  we  would  not  only  have  lost  Illinois  but  in  all 
probability  Kentucky  also." 

As  it  was  ' '  he  planted  the  flag  of  the  Old  Dominion  over 
the  whole  of  the  northwestern  territory,  and  when  peace 
came  the  British  boundary  line  was  forced  to  the  big  lakes 
instead  of  coming  down  to  the  Ohio,  and  the  State  of  Vir- 
ginia had  a  clear  title  to  this  vast  domain,  out  of  which 
were  carved  the  states  of  Ohio,  Illinois,  Indiana,  Wisconsin, 
Michigan  and  a  part  of  Minnesota."  Virginia's  share  in 
the  history  of  the  nation  has  been  gallant  and  leading,  but 
the  Revolutionary  war  was  emphatically  fought  by  Ameri- 
cans for  America ;  no  part  could  have  won  without  the  help 
of  the  whole,  and  every  victory  was  thus  a  victory  for  all 
in  which  all  alike  can  take  pride — American  Monthly 
Magazine. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  185 


UNCROWNED  QUEENS  AND  KINGS,  AS  SHOWN 

THROUGH  HUMOROUS  INCIDENTS  OF 

THE  REVOLUTION. 

One  by  one  the  years  have  dropped  into  the  abyss  of 
the  past,  since  the  close  of  the  war  for  American  Inde- 
pendence. Time  has  spread  his  brooding  wings  over  the 
gulf  and  much  of  the  horror  and  of  the  pathos  of  that 
tremendous  struggle  is  now  veiled  from  us;  yet  we  are 
still  perhaps  too  prone  to  remember  only  the  dreadful  in 
the  events  of  the  war,  too  anxious  to  recall  only  the  dark 
days,  leaving  out  the  traces  of  cheerfulness  which  even 
in  those  troublous  times,  were  experienced  here  and  there ; 
for  there  were  many  incidents  connected  with  the  American 
Revolution  which  were  in  lighter  vein ;  incidents  which  did 
not,  it  is  true,  abolish  the  gloom  and  the  suffering,  but 
which  lightened  the  sombreness  and  shed  rays  of  glimmer- 
ing light  through  the  shade. 

It  has  always  seemed  to  me  almost  incredible,  that  the 
Colonists  could  have  found  anything  to  laugh  at  during 
those  awful  years.  They  were  threatened  with  absolute  loss 
of  liberty  as  a  country;  they  were  menaced  by  starvation, 
and  they  were  obliged  to  pass  through  the  rigors  of  the 
winters,  without  proper  food  or  clothing.  The  sanctity  of 
their  homes  was  invaded  by  the  grim  monster  of  war,  who 
was  no  respecter  of  persons,  and  to  whose  voracious  palate 
all  persons  were  equally  attractive. 

If  the  British  won  their  cause,  the  Colonists  had 
nothing  better  to  which  to  look  forward  than  slavery  and 
injustice;  if  the  colonists  won  theirs,  they  must  face  the 
future  poorly  equipped  in  every  way.  The  waste  of  their 
country  must  be  repaired,  their  desolate  homes  must  be 
rebuilt;  their  business,  which  was  crushed,  must  be  re- 
stored, they  must  begin  from  the  beginning.  "Whatever 
the  result,  the  outlook  was  dark.  As  the  days  went  on, 
the  husbands  and  fathers  were  obliged  to  forsake  their 
plows,  and  go,  perhaps  with  but  a  moment's  warning,  to 


186  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

bloody  fields  of  battle.  Poorly  clothed,  they  fought  in 
their  shirt  sleeves  and  with  their  feet  bare,  their  bloody 
foot  prints  often  standing  out  as  symbols  of  the  struggle. 
The  women  must  remain  at  home,  to  plow  and  sow  and 
reap.  The  American  soldiers  must  have  spent  many  sleep- 
less nights  thinking  of  their  unprotected  ones  at  home, 
alone  and  defenceless.  How  could  there  be  anything  of 
humor  connected  with  the  struggle?  And  yet,  while  the 
American  Revolution  can  in  no  sense  of  the  word  be  said  to 
have  had  its  humorous  side,  yet  there  was  much  of  humor 
connected  with  many  Revolutionary  occurrences,  the  stories 
of  which  have  lived  until  the  present  time  and  have  gained 
perhaps  in  their  humorous  aspect  since  the  close  of  the 
great  struggle. 

One  of  the  first  incidents  of  the  war,  which  I  have  found 
to  savor  of  the  humorous,  was  the  meeting  of  General 
John  Burgoyne  and  the  Irish  patriot  immediately  after 
the  surrender  of  the  British  General.  All  through  the 
march  of  the  General,  to  Saratoga,  he  had  boasted  of  the 
of  the  calamities  which  he  would  bring  upon  the 
Americans.  Pompously  up  and  down  his  quarters  he 
would  strut,  composing  high  sounding  sentences  and  lis- 
tening to  the  fine  roll  of  his  voice,  revelling  in  his  verbos- 
ity and  smiling  with  satisfaction  at  his  thoughts  which 
he  deemed  so  great.  The  manifestos  which  he  issued  so 
frequently,  were  words,  words,  words,  and  these  reiterated 
over  and  over  again,  the  direful  things  which  would  en- 
compass the  Americans,  did  they  not  surrender  with  all 
haste  and  with  becoming  deference.  He  made  himself 
ridiculous  by  the  manifestos,  but  he  did  not  realize  this 
until  he  made  his  way  through  the  streets  of  Albany,  a 
conquered  rather  than  a  conquering  hero,  and  met  a  funny 
little  Irishman,  who  had  evidently  studied  the  harangues 
of  the  General  to  good  purpose. 

On  the  march  through  the  Albany  streets,  Burgoyne 
was  surrounded  by  men,  women  and  children,  who  would 
fain  look  upon  the  face  of  this  pompous  British  General. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  187 

Suddenly  in  the  crowded  part  of  the  street,  there  bobbed 
up  in  front  of  him,  a  blue-eyed,  red-haired  Celt,  his  bright 
eyes  dancing  with  mirth  and  his  tongue  ready  with  the 
wit  of  his  mother  country.  "Make  way  there,  ye  spal- 
peens," he  shouted,  "sure  don't  ye  see  the  great  Ginral 
Burgyne  a  comin'  along?  Sthand  back  fer  the  great 
Ginral.  Wud  yees  be  standin '  in  the  way  of  the  conquerer  ? 
If  ye  don't  sthand  back  and  give  the  great  man  room, 
shure  I'll  murther  ivy  mither's  son  of  ye." 

History  does  not  record  how  the  boasting  Briton  re- 
ceived the  onslaught  of  the  Irishman,  but  we  can  readily 
imagine  that  his  face  lengthened  a  little,  as  he  heard  the 
laughs  on  every  side.  Still  it  is  quite  possible  that  he  did 
not  see  the  joke  until  the  following  week.  Someway,  that 
march  of  Burgoyne  and  his  army,  always  struck  me  as 
humorous  to  a  certain  extent.  While  there  was  the  sad- 
ness caused  by  the  loss  of  many  lives,  and  while  the  battle 
of  Saratoga  was  one  of  the  great  battles  of  the  world,  still 
Burgoyne  himself,  with  his  verbosity  and  his  pomposity, 
was  so  ludicrous  a  figure  oft  times,  that  he  gave  a  humorous 
tinge  to  the  entire  campaign. 

The  saying  of  General  Starke  at  Bennington  which  has 
come  down  to  us  with  such  pleasing  patriotism :  ' '  Here 
come  the  Red  Coats  and  we  must  beat  them  to-day,  or 
Mollie  Starke  is  a  widow,  "was  not  a  humorous  saying,  nor 
was  the  battle  of  Bennington  a  humorous  incident.  But 
Bill  Nye,  the  immortal,  has  written  something  exceedingly 
funny  concerning  both.  Nye  said,  "This  little  remark  of 
Starke 's  made  an  instantaneous  hit,  and  when  they  counted 
up  their  prisoners  at  night  they  found  they  had  six  hun- 
dred souls  and  a  Hessian."  Nye's  description  of  Bur- 
goyne's  surrender  is  well  worth  repeating.  He  wrote :  "A 
council  was  now  held  in  Burgoyne 's  tent  and  on  the  ques- 
tion of  renewing  the  fight,  stood  six  to  six,  when  an  eigh- 
teen pound  hot  shot  went  through  the  tent,  knocking  a 
stylograph  pen  out  of  Burgoyne 's  hand.  Almost  at  once 
he  decided  to  surrender,  and  the  entire  army  of  6999  men 


188  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

was  surrendered,  together  with  arms,  portable  bath  tubs 
and  leather  hat  boxes. ' ' 

Nearly  all  of  our  American  soldiers  were  brave;  that 
goes  without  saying.  One  of  the  bravest  of  these  was 
Lieutenant  Manning.  His  deeds  of  prowess  were  many 
and  great.  He  was  hero  in  one  extremely  humorous  inci- 
dent at  the  battle  of  Eutaw.  After  the  British  line  had 
been  broken,  the  "Old  Buffs"  started  to  run.  This  par- 
ticular regiment  was  as  boastful  as  General  Burgoyne. 
Manning  knew  this  and  he  was  delighted  to  follow  hard 
after  them  with  his  platoon.  Excited  in  his  pursuit  he  did 
not  notice  that  he  was  getting  away  from  his  men,  until  he 
found  himself  surrounded  by  British  soldiers  and  not  an 
American  in  sight.  Something  must  be  done  at  once  and 
Manning  was  the  man  to  do  it.  He  siezed  a  British  officer 
standing  near,  and  much  to  that  officer's  amazement  he  not 
only  felt  himself  violently  handled,  but  he  heard  the  sten- 
torian voice  of  the  American  shouting — "You  are  my 
prisoner. ' '  His  sword  was  wrested  from  his  grasp,  and  he 
was  made  a  human  shield  for  this  preposterously  impudent 
American.  But  instead  of  making  a  break  for  liberty,  he 
began  to  relate  his  various  titles  to  Manning.  ' '  I  am  sir, ' ' 
he  said,  "Sir  Henry  Barry,  Deputy  Adjutant  General  of 
the  British  Army,  Captain  in  the  52d  Regiment,  Secretary 
to  the  Commandant  of  Charleston." 

' '  Enough  Sir, ' '  said  Manning,  ' '  You  are  just  the  man  I 
have  been  looking  for.  Fear  nothing;  you  shall  screen  me 
from  danger  and  I  will  take  special  care  of  you, ' '  which  he 
did,  holding  the  astonished  man  of  title  in  front  of  him, 
until  he  reached  the  Americans  and  handed  him  over  as  a 
prisoner. 

Colonel  Peter  Horry  was  another  brave  man  of  the 
south.  He  was  afflicted  by  an  impediment  in  his  speech 
and  at  one  time  the  impediment  nearly  worked  disaster  for 
him.  He  was  ordered  to  await  in  ambuscade  vrith  his 
regiment  for  a  British  detachment,  and  he  soon  had  them 
completely  within  his  power;  but  when  he  tried  to  com- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  189 

mand  his  men  to  fire,  his  speech  failed  him.  In  vain  he 
corrugated  his  brows  and  twisted  his  jaws ;  the  word  would 
not  come  out.  "Fi,  fi,  fi,  fi,"  he  shouted,  but  could  get  no 
further.  Finally  in  his  desperation  he  howled,  "shoot, 
blank  you,  shoot.  You  know  very  well  what  I  would  say. 
Shoot  and  be  blanked  to  you."  Horry  was  a  determined 
character.  At  one  time  in  battle  a  brother  officer  called  to 
him: 

"I  am  wounded,  Colonel."  "Think  no  more  of  it, 
Baxter,  but  stand  to  your  post,"  called  back  Horry.  "But 
I  can't  stand,  Colonel,  I  am  wounded  a  second  time." 
"Then  lie  down,  Baxter,  but  quit  not  your  post."  "Col- 
onel," cried  the  suffering  man,  "they  have  shot  me  again, 
and  if  I  remain  longer  here  I  shall  be  shot  to  pieces. "  "Be 
it  so  Baxter,"  returned  Horry,  "but  stir  not." 

The  part  that  women  took  in  the  Revolution  has  been 
sung  by  poets  and  made  the  nucleus  of  writers'  efforts  for 
a  hundred  years  and  more.  Those  Revolutionary  women 
had  brawn  as  well  as  brain.  They  were  able  to  defend  their 
homes  from  the  depredations  of  the  Royalists;  they  could 
bid  the  Indian  begone,  not  only  by  word  of  mouth  but  at 
the  musket's  end.  They  could  plow  and  sow  and  reap; 
they  could  care  for  their  families  and  they  could  take  up 
arms  in  liberty's  cause  if  the  need  arose.  Oh,  those  women 
of  the  American  Revolution !  What  a  history  of  bravery 
and  fortitude  and  endurance  they  bequeathed  to  their 
descendants !  There  is  some  humor,  too,  in  the  stories  left 
to  us  in  record  of  their  heroism. 

It  was  the  fashion  among  certain  circles  of  Whig 
women,  during  the  dark  days  of  the  Revolution,  to  wear 
deep  mourning  as  an  indication  of  their  feelings.  The 
black  typified  the  darkness  of  the  times  and  was  worn  by 
the  town  ladies  who  could  afford  it.  One  of  these  ladies,  a 
Mrs.  Brewton,  was  walking  along  Broad  street  in  Charles- 
ton one  morning,  when  she  was  joined  by  an  insolently 
familiar  British  officer.  At  that  very  moment,  the  crepe 
flounce  on  her  dress  was  accidently  torn  off.  She  quickly 


190  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

picked  it  up  and  passing  just  at  that  time  the  house  of  the 
absent  Governor,  John  Rutledge,  she  sprang  up  the  steps 
before  the  astonished  eyes  of  the  officer  and  decked  the 
door  with  crepe,  saying  in  ringing  tones,  "Where  are  you, 
dearest  Governor?  Surely  the  magnanimous  Britons  will 
not  deem  it  a  crime  if  I  cause  your  house  as  well  as  your 
friends  to  mourn  your  absence."  Colonel  Moncrief,  the 
English  engineer,  was  occupying  the  house  at  the  time, 
and  his  feelings  were  hurt  at  the  action  of  Mrs.  Brewton, 
as  were  those  of  the  officer  who  had  been  with  her,  and 
she  was  arrested  a  few  hours  afterward  and  sent  to  Phila- 
delphia. 

One  of  the  most  marked  women  of  the  Revolution,  a 
woman  who  figured  in  many  a  ludicrous  as  well  as  serious 
incident,  was  Nancy  Hart,  of  Georgia.  Nancy  had  a  fright- 
ful temper,  a  big  ungainly  body,  and  she  suffered  from  a 
most  marked  obliquity  of  sight.  In  fact  Nancy  was  so 
cross-eyed,  that  her  own  children  never  could  tell  when 
their  mother  was  looking  at  them  and  were  perhaps  better 
behaved  on  that  very  account.  One  time  a  party  of  Tories 
entered  her  modest  home  on  food  intent.  They  had  taken 
the  precaution  of  providing  food  for  themselves,  shooting 
Nancy's  last  remaining  gobbler.  Mrs.  Hart  had  her  head 
muffled  up  and  no  one  had  noticed  her  cross-eyes.  The 
soldiers  stacked  their  arms  within  reach  and  Nancy  passed 
between  them  and  the  table,  assiduous  in  her  attention 
to  the  diners.  The  party  had  a  jug,  of  course,  and  when 
they  were  becoming  right  merry,  Nancy  suddenly  tore  the 
mufflers  from  her  head  and  snatching  up  one  of  the  guns, 
swore  that  she  would  kill  every  last  man  who  tried  to  get 
his  gun  or  who  delayed  in  getting  out  of  the  cabin.  The 
men  looked  at  Nancy's  eyes  and  each  man  thinking  she 
was  aiming  at  him  only,  made  a  hasty  and  determined 
exit.  But  the  terrible  woman  killed  three  Tories  that  day 
with  her  own  hands.  One  day  Nancy  was  boiling  soap. 
As  she  industriously  stirred,  one  of  her  eyes  caught  a 
glimpse  of  a  Tory  peeking  through  a  chink  in  the  cabin. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  191 

Stirring  busily  away,  Nancy  kept  one  eye  on  the  soap  and 
the  other  on  the  chink.  When  the  spy  again  appeared  she 
let  drive  full  at  the  chink,  a  good  big  ladle  full  of  hot 
soap.  A  scream  satisfied  her  that  she  had  hit  the  mark, 
and  she  finished  her  soap-making  with  great  satisfaction. 
This  woman  was  termed  by  one  of  the  patriots :  "  A  honey 
of  a  patriot,  but  the  devil  of  a  wife. ' ' 

The  Revolutionary  woman's  resources  were  indeed 
great,  and  the  strategy  she  employed  was  as  satisfactory 
as  it  was  many  times  humorous.  A  Whig  woman  of  New 
York  State,  a  Mrs.  Fisher,  was  one  morning  surprised  by 
the  hurried  entrance  of  a  Whig  neighbor,  who  begged  of 
her  to  conceal  him  as  the  Tories  were  pursuing  him.  Just 
outside  her  door  was  an  ash  heap  four  or  five  feet  high. 
Seizing  a  shovel,  Mrs.  Fisher  immediately  excavated  a 
place  in  the  ashes  and  buried  her  friend  in  it.  But  first  she 
had  taken  precaution  to  place  a  number  of  quills  one  in 
the  other  and  extend  them  from  the  prisoner 's  mouth  to  the 
air,  that  he  might  breathe,  and  there  he  remained  snugly 
ensconced  until  the  Tories  had  come  and  gone,  and  even 
though  they  ran  over  the  ash  heap,  they  never  suspected 
what  lay  beneath  it. 

Equally  resourceful  was  that  woman  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, who  when  her  husband  was  pursued  by  Tories, 
hustled  him  down  cellar  and  into  a  meat  barrel  partially 
filled  with  brine  and  meat.  The  Tories  went  into  the  cellar 
and  even  peered  into  the  barrel,  but  they  did  not  discover 
the  man,  who  at  the  risk  of  terribly  inflamed  eyes,  ducked 
his  head  beneath  the  brine,  when  he  heard  the  soldiers' 
hands  on  the  head  of  the  barrel.  Inflamed  eyes  were 
easier  to  bear  than  imprisonment  in  the  hands  of  the 
British. 

Bill  Nye's  description  of  the  close  of  the  war  is  as 
humorous  as  it  is  correct.  Nye  wrote:  "The  country  was 
free  and  independent,  but  oh,  how  ignorant  it  was  about 
the  science  of  government.  The  author  does  not  wish  to  be 
personal  when  he  states  that  the  country  at  that  time  did 


192  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

not  know  enough  about  affairs  to  carry  water  for  a  circus 
elephant.  It  was  heavily  in  debt,  with  no  power  to  raise 
money.  New  England  refused  to  pay  tribute  to  King 
George  and  he  in  turn  directed  his  hired  men  to  overturn 
the  government;  but  a  felon  broke  out  on  his  thumb  and 
before  he  could  put  it  down,  the  crisis  was  averted  and  the 
country  saved." 

And  so  it  goes;  the  sad  and  the  humorous  are  blended 
on  every  side  in  life's  struggles  either  in  war  or  peace. 
Fortunate  is  the  man  or  woman  who  can  halt  a  little  by  the 
wayside  and  for  a  few  moments  laugh  dull  care  away. — 
Compiled  from  Federation  Magazine. 


A  COLONIAL  STORY. 

A  long  time  ago,  before  the  hand  of  progress  had 
stamped  the  land  with  a  net  work  of  steel,  or  commerce 
and  trade  had  blackened  the  skies  of  blue,  John  Hamilton 
and  Tabitha  Thweatt  were  married.  There  was  no  cutting 
of  Dutchess  satin  or  charmeuse  draped  with  shadow  lace, 
for  it  took  time  in  those  days  to  prepare  for  a  wedding. 
Silk  worms  had  to  be  raised,  thread  spun  and  woven  into 
cloth  before  the  bride's  clothes  could  be  fashioned.  Wait- 
ing was  no  bar  to  happiness;  the  bride-to-be  sang  merrily 
while  spinning  or  weaving  at  her  loom  and  as  the  shuttles 
went  in  and  out  her  day  dreams  were  inter-mingled  with 
the  weaving  of  her  wedding  garments. 

In  the  year  of  our  Lord,  1770,  the  making  of  silk  in  the 
colonies  was  a  new  industry  and  when  Mistress  Tabitha 
decided  on  silk  for  her  wedding  dress  she  had  to  plant  mul- 
berry twigs  and  wait  for  them  to  grow.  She  had  to  pick 
the  leaves  to  feed  the  worms  until  they  wrapped  themselves 
in  their  silken  cocoons  and  as  soon  as  the  cocoons  would 
web  they  were  baked  to  keep  them  from  cutting  the  raw 
silk.  It  took  one  hundred  cocoons  to  make  one  strand  of 
silk.  After  all  these  preparations  this  colonial  girl 's  dream 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  193 

of  a  silken  wedding  gown  grew  into  a  realization.  She  not 
only  raised  the  silk  worms,  but  spun  the  silk  that  they 
had  webbed  and  wove  it  into  shimmering  cloth,  from  which 
her  wedding  gown  was  made.  She  also  knit  her  wedding 
stockings  of  silk;  but  only  one  pair  of  silk  went  into  her 
trousseau  for  the  rest  were  knit  of  cotton. 

The  family  records  say  that  this  couple  had  no  worldly 
goods  except  what  their  own  hands  had  wrought.  They 
were  God-fearing  people  of  the  Puritan  type.  He  felled 
the  trees  and  sawed  them  into  logs  out  of  which  their  home 
was  constructed.  The  logs  that  went  toward  the  building 
of  their  home  were  mortised  and  pinned  together  with 
wooden  pegs.  The  floors  were  puncheon  flat  slabs  split 
from  whole  tree  trunks  and  the  doors  and  windows  were 
made  of  oak  and  were  swung  on  great  wooden  hinges. 
The  chimney  was  of  "stick  and  dirt"  and  across  the  broad 
fire  place  hung  the  crane  from  which  were  suspended  the 
cooking  utensils. 

John  Hamilton  was  a  member  of  one  of  Virginia 's  most 
distinguished  families.  He  possessed  an  iron  will  that 
defied  adversity;  he  blazed  the  way  through  his  state  and 
was  brave  enough  to  "hew  down  forests  and  live  on 
crumbs. ' '  Mistress  Tabitha  was  a  help-meet  to  her  pioneer 
husband.  She  not  only  cooked  his  meals  but  carried  them 
to  him  when  he  worked  in  the  field.  He  had  the  honor, 
and  in  those  days  it  was  indeed  an  honor,  to  be  elected  as  a 
representative  from  his  state  to  Congress.  The  frugal  and 
beautiful  Tabitha  accompanied  him  to  Washington.  Her 
preparation  for  the  replenishing  of  her  ward-robe  was 
quite  as  elaborate  as  those  formerly  made  for  her  wedding. 
With  deft  hands  she  carded  from  the  snowy  cotton  piles 
of  rolls  that  were  spun  into  thread  and  she  wove  many 
yards  of  cloth  from  which  she  made  her  underwear.  From 
carefully  carded  bats  of  cotton  she  spun  many  spindles  of 
fine  smooth  thread  that  was  woven  into  fine  cream  cotton 
goods,  some  of  which  were  dyed  with  copperas.  Some  was 
spread  day  and  night  on  the  grass  where  the  dew  would 


194  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

fall  to  bleach  it.  From  the  bleached  cotton  this  industrious 
woman  made  her  dresses  and  the  snowy  whiteness  of  some 
of  her  gowns  was  the  envy  of  her  neighbors.  She  also 
carried  in  her  little  hair  trunk  to  Washington,  not  only 
many  well  made  cotton  garments,  but  was  the  proud  pos- 
sessor of  one  black  silk  dress  and  two  black  silk  aprons. 
The  dress  was  afterward  described  as  being  so  heavy  that 
it  could  ' '  stand  alone. ' '  Mistress  Tabitha,  although  a  little 
overworked,  was  not  too  weary  after  reaching  Washington 
to  attend  the  Presidential  ball  and  dance  the  minuet  with 
the  gallant  Washington  and  the  noted  LaFayette. 

John  and  Tabitha  Hamilton  had  eleven  children.  All 
were  born  in  Virginia  except  one,  who  came  after  they 
moved  to  Hancock  County,  near  Sparta,  Georgia,  in  1791. 
Their  home  was  destroyed  twice  by  the  Tories  and  once 
by  a  Tornado.  Mr.  Hamilton  had  just  completed  a  nice 
dwelling  for  his  family  when  the  memorable  tornado  and 
cyclone  passed  over  that  portion  of  Georgia  in  April,  1805. 
All  of  the  family  except  Jack  and  Everard  were  away  from 
home.  There  was  but  one  small  house  left  on  the  place, 
their  new  house  having  been  blown  away,  none  of  it  left 
standing.  Some  of  the  doors  were  found  six  miles  off  in 
an  adjoining  county.  Clothing,  books  and  papers  were 
carried  promiscuously  away.  Jack  was  much  bruised, 
having  been  struck  by  many  things.  His  booksack  was 
blown  away,  and  his  "Ovid"  was  found  forty  miles  over 
in  Baldwin  County  and  returned  to  him.  This  book  is  now 
in  possession  of  one  of  his  descendants.  Everard  was  car- 
ried into  the  air  and  lodged  in  a  swamp  about  a  quarter  of 
a  mile  away,  where  he  was  caught  up  by  the  whirl  wind. 
Madame  Hamilton  took  this  misfortune  as  coming  from 
God  and  helped  her  husband  to  collect  anew  his  scattered 
fortune.  Later  we  read  of  them  as  living  on  their  planta- 
tion surrounded  by  their  servants,  who  ministered  to  their 
comforts  and  attended  their  broad  fields. 

In  reading  about  the  women  who  lived  in  the  early  days 
of  Georgia,  their  splendid  lives  stand  as  a  beacon  to  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  195 

reckless  and  extravagant  ones  of  today.  They  not  only 
spun  the  thread  and  wove  the  cloth  used  in  their  homes, 
but  they  made  all  of  the  clothes  their  children  wore,  and 
reared  them  to  be  God-fearing  men  and  women.  They 
visited  their  neighbors  for  thirty  miles  away  and  extended 
a  glad  welcome  and  cordial  hospitality  for  any  and  every 
guest.  One  with  impunity  may  ask  the  question:  "Are 
they  pleased  with  their  descendants,  these  women  of 
Georgia's  pioneer  days?" — MRS.  J.  L.  WALKER,  Lyman 
Hall  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


MOLLY  PITCHER  FOR  HALL  OF  FAME. 

The  movement  to  place  in  the  hall  of  fame  a  bust  of 
Molly  Pitcher,  the  only  woman  sergeant  in  the  United 
States  army,  has  the  enthusiastic  support  of  former  Sena- 
tor Chauncey  M.  Depew. 

It  was  in  the  important  movements  of  the  year  1778 
that  at  the  battle  of  Mommouth  Molly  Pitcher  was  carrying 
water  to  her  husband,  who  was  a  gunner  of  a  battery  at 
one  piece  of  artillery.  He  was  disabled  and  the  lieutenant 
proposed  to  remove  the  piece  out  of  danger,  when  Molly 
said,  "I  can  do  everything  my  husband  could,"  and  she 
performed  her  husband's  duties  at  his  old  gun  better  than 
he  could  have  done. 

The  next  morning  she  was  taken  before  General  Wash- 
ington, her  wonderful  act  was  reported  and  its  influence 
upon  the  outcome  of  the  battle,  which  was  a  victory,  and 
Washington  made  her  at  once  a  sergeant  in  the  army  to 
stand  on  the  rolls  in  that  rank  as  long  as  she  would. 

It  seems  appropriate  now  for  us  to  place  among  the 
immortals  and  in  the  hall  of  fame  this  only  woman  ser- 
geant of  the  United  States  army,  who  won  her  title  fight- 
ing for  her  country  upon  the  field  of  battle. — National 
Magazine. 


196  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


REVOLUTIONARY  RELICS. 

Great  grandmother's  spinning  wheel  stands  in  the  hall, 

That  is  her  portrait  there; 
Great  grandfather's  sword  hangs  near  on  the  wall, 

What  do  you  girlies  care, 
That  in  seventeen  hundred  and  seventy-six, 

One  bitter  winter's  night, 
When  the  air  was  full  of  sleet  and  snow, 

And  the  kitchen  fire  burned  bright. 

He  stood  with  a  face  so  thoughtful  and  sad 

With  his  hand  on  her  hair, 
"Asenath,  I  start  at  the  break  of  day," 

Oh,  that  bride  was  so  fair! 
But  country  was  dearer  than  home  and  wife, 

Proudly  she  lifted  her  head, 
"Go,  David,  and  stay  till  is  ended  the  strife, 
God  keep  you,  dear,"  she  said. 

Toward  the  loom  in  the  kitchen  she  drew, 

She  had  finished  that  day, 
A  beautiful  blanket  of  brown  and  blue, 

"Was  it  plaided  this  way?" 
It  was  just  like  this  but  faded  and  worn, 

And  full  of  holes  and  stain, 
When  our  soldier  grandsire  came  back  one  morn, 

To  wife  and  child  again. 

When  his  eyes  were  dim  and  her  hair  was  white, 

Waiting  the  Master's  call, 
She  finished  this  blanket  one  winter's  night, 

That  hangs  here  on  the  wall. 
And  dreaming  of  fifty  years  before, 

When  she  stood  by  that  wheel, 
And  that  cradle  creaked  on  the  kitchen  floor, 

By  that  swift  and  reel. 
There's  a  rare  old  plate  with  a  portrait  in  blue, 

Of  England's  George  the  Third, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  197 

A  porringer  small  and  a  stain  shoe, 

That  five  brave  hearts  has  stirred, 
There's  an  ancient  gun  all  covered  with  rust, 

A  clock,  a  bible  worn, 
"Fox  Book  of  Martyrs"  and  "Holy  Wars," 

A  brass  tipped  powder  horn. 
. 

Great  grandfather  sat  in  that  old  arm  chair, 

Grandmother  rocked  by  his  side, 
Till  the  Master  called  through  the  sweet  June  air, 

They  both  went  out  with  the  tide. 
— Florence  I.  W.  Burnham  in  American  Monthly  Magazine. 


TRAGEDY  OF  THE  REVOLUTION  OVER- 
LOOKED  BY  HISTORIANS. 

BY  T.  H.  DREHER,  M.  D. 

Before  the  William  Thompson  Chapter,  D.  A.  R.,  in- 
vaded this  neck  of  the  moral  vineyard  and  put  its  delicate, 
historical  fingers  upon  the  tendrils  of  local  happenings, 
there  was  no  blare  of  trumpets  over  a  foul  and  bloody  deed 
which  occurred  near  the  "Metts  Cross-Roads, "  in  this 
county,  during  the  Revolutionary  war.  But  the  gruesome 
case  was  never  without  intense  interest  to  those  concerned 
in  the  episodes  of  a  past  age.  The  strange  and  mysterious 
always  throws  an  additional  halo  over  our  heroes.  This 
feeling  is  intensified,  in  this  case,  by  virtue  of  the  fact  that 
the  same  blood  which  ran  in  the  veins  of  the  victim  of  the 
"cross-roads  plot,"  now  pulsates  in  the  arteries  of  many 
lineal,  living  descendants  who  are  part  and  parcel  of  Cal- 
houn  County's  sturdy  citizenship. 

The  malignant,  cruel  and  cowardly  feature  of  this  das- 
tardly crime,  garbed  in  a  plausible  and  hypocritical  cloak, 
make  it  unique,  even  in  the  gory  annals  of  criminal  warfare 
and  harks  our  memories  back  to  the  murder  of  Duncan, 
King  of  Scotland.  Here,  as  there,  we  have  no  doubt,  but 
that  souls  grew  faint  over  the  details  of  the  foul  conspiracy 


198  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

and  ' '  their  seated  hearts  knocked  at  their  ribs ' '  until  spur- 
red to  the  "sticking  place"  by  the  evil  eloquence  of  some 
overpowering  and  unnatural  genius,  like  unto  Lady  Mac- 
beth. John  Adams  Treutlen  (for  that  was  the  name  of 
our  hero)  is  in  his  grave. 

"After  life's  fitful  fever,  he  sleeps  well, 
Treason  has  done  his  worst ;  nor  steel  nor  poison, 
Malice  domestic,  foreign  levy,  nothing, 
Can  touch  him  further." 

That  is  true.  The  cold  pen  of  a  true  chronicler,  how- 
ever, must  again  allude  to  the  utter  negligence  and  gross 
indifference  of  an  earlier  age  to  a  proper  appreciation  of 
significant  events.  That  a  noted  Governor  of  Georgia 
should  be  brutally  done  to  death  by  revengeful  Tories  be- 
cause of  the  intense  Whig  fires  which  consumed  his  very 
soul;  that  children,  and  children's  children,  should  grow 
up  around  the  scene  of  his  untimely  taking-off,  and  still  his 
home  and  his  grave  should  be,  today,  unidentified  spots  on 
the  map  of  Calhoun  County  force  us  to  exclaim  with  Mark 
Antony:  "But  yesterday  the  word  of  Caesar  might  have 
stood  against  the  world.  Now  lies  he  there  and  none  so 
poor  to  do  him  reverence. ' ' 

The  salient  facts  in  the  life  of  Treutlen  are  interesting. 
Born  in  Berectsgaden,  1726,  as  a  German  Salzburger,  he 
was  brought  to  this  country  in  a  boat  load  of  Salzburgers 
that  landed  at  Savannah  in  1734.  If  early  impressions 
count  for  anything,  there  is  no  wonder  that  the  spirit  of 
liberty  and  independence  sank  deep  into  the  very  inmost 
recesses  of  his  soul.  His  father,  along  with  thousands  of 
other  German  Protestants,  was  exiled  by  a  fanatical  decree 
of  Archbishop  Leopold,  which  drove  out  from  his  domain 
all  who  would  not  accept  the  Catholic  faith.  It  was  this 
Salzburger  strain  and  religion  which  was  unterrified  and 
unwashed,  amid  the  raging  tempests  of  an  angry  sea,  while 
others  aboard,  including  John  Wesley,  trembled  for  life, 
and  confessed  to  a  livelier  awakening  to  the  rejuvenating 
and  sustaining  power  of  God  upon  frail  humanity. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  199 

Some  25  miles  from  Savannah  these  brave  and  devout 
pilgrims,  after  singing  a  psalm  "set  up  a  rock  and  in  the 
spirit  of  the  pious  Samuel,  named  the  place  Ebenezer 
(stone  of  help)  'for  hitherto  hath  the  Lord  helped  us.'  ' 
Amid  these  crude  but  inspiring  surroundings  the  young 
Treutlen  received  a  splendid  education,  for  that  day,  under 
the  strict  tutelage  of  his  scholarly  Lutheran  pastors,  Bol- 
zius  and  Gronau.  Thus  it  was  that,  when  the  red  gloom  of 
impending  war  was  already  visible  on  the  distant  horizon, 
and  the  Provincials  had  gathered  at  Savannah  to  take  steps 
against  the  high-handed  measures  of  England,  John  Adam 
Treutlen  answered  the  roll-call  from  the  Ebenezer  country 
and  was  one  of  its  leading  and  most  aggressive  spirits. 
Thus  it  was  that,  in  the  teeth  of  strong  Tory  influence  and 
friends  he  espoused  the  patriot  cause  with  all  the  ardor  of 
a  Knight  Templar,  thus  becoming  the  chief  object  of 
Loyalist  hatred  and  vengeance,  his  property  being  con- 
fiscated, and  his  home,  with  many  of  its  treasures,  burned 
to  ashes. 

Elected  first  Governor  of  Georgia  under  an  independ- 
ent Constitution  by  the  Legislature,  in  1777,  there  was  not 
as  yet  the  fearful  carnage  and  bloody  battles  which  were 
still  to  come,  and  which  were  to  make  the  South  and  its 
manhood  a  synonym  for  courage  and  endurance  the  world 
over.  It  is  true  that  the  immortal  conflict  on  Sullivan's 
Island  had  been  fought  and  won,  but  Clinton  and  Parker, 
still  hopeful  under  drooping  plumes,  had  shifted  the  scene 
to  the  North. 

The  "blue  bloods"  of  the  Palmetto  State— with  the 
exception  of  Charleston's  brave  firebrand,  (Christopher 
Gadsden,  were  still  praying  for  that  peace,  borne  of  wealth, 
intelligence  and  luxurious  ease.  Georgia,  now  perched 
upon  the  top-most  round  of  empire — pre-eminence — was 
then  weak  in  its  swaddling  clothes  and  viewed  only  as  a 
promising  child  to  be  brought  up  in  the  aristocratic  South 
Carolina  Sunday  School.  With  a  cool  and  calculating 
diplomacy  which  smacked  somewhat  suggestively  of  the 


200  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

rising  Talleyrand,  we  are  told  that  the  gentle  ripples  on  the 
waters  little  betokened  the  torpedoes  which  were  being  laid 
beneath.  Bludgeons,  not  the  velvety  hand  of  artful  dip- 
lomacy, were  calculated  to  narcotize  the  grim-visaged  ruler 
of  the  satrapy  across  the  Savannah,  as  all  accounts  agree 
that  Truetlen  was  a  somewhat  "stormy  petrel,"  a  sort  of 
pocket  edition  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  the  greatest  civilized 
dictator  that  the  world  has  ever  produced — who  could 
rout  a  parliament  of  sitting  members,  lock  the  door  and 
put  the  key  in  his  pocket. 

And  so  it  came  to  pass  that,  when  the  Governor  heard  of 
the  so-called  "Machiavellian  scheme"  to  annex  his  little 
kingdom  to  the  great  Palmetto  Commonwealth,  by  a  coup 
d'etat,  he  pounded  the  floor  viciously  with  his  "condemna- 
tory hoof"  and  shot  a  fiery  proclamation  over  the  official 
mahogany,  denouncing  the  conspiracy  in  bitter  vein  and 
offering  a  heavy  reward  for  the  chief  emissary — Drayton. 
When  the  Georgia  patriot  Government  fell  in  1779,  Treut- 
len,  along  with  hundreds  of  others,  took  British  protection 
and  fled  to  St.  Matthews  Parish,  in  the  present  County  of 
Calhoun;  and  the  road  he  travelled  was  a  thornier  path 
than  that  from  Jerusalem  to  Jerico  with 

"Injuns  on  the  upper  way, 
And  death  upon  the  lower." 

It  is  not  for  me  to  split  fine  hairs  over  the  principle 
involved  in  conditional  agreements  during  the  days  of  war, 
when  every  man  is  showing  his  teeth  and  reaching  at  the 
throat  of  his  enemy.  Suffice  to  say,  that  he  chafed  under 
the  Tory  bit  and  would  have  none  of  it.  A  born  fighter  and 
a  man  of  rugged  individuality,  it  was  impossible  for  him 
to  hug  both  sides  of  any  fence.  A  dictator  by  instinct  (and 
by  Georgia  statute,)  well  educated,  and  fresh  from  the 
Gubernatorial  eiderdown  he  would  naturally  bring  around 
his  head  swarms  of  bitter  enemies,  in  times  of  war,  and  he 
was  a  marked  man.  He  met  his  doom  on  a  dreary  night 
in  1780  under  peculiarly  atrocious  conditions. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  201 

It  is  said  that  a  small  band  of  vindictive  Tories  went 
to  his  home  during  that  fateful  evening,  and  enticed  him- 
out,  on  a  treacherous  plea  of  surrender  on  certain  plausible 
conditions.  As  he  emerged  from  his  door,  he  was  seized, 
and  not  only  brutally  butchered,  but,  (all  traditions  agree,) 
literally  hacked  to  pieces.  The  exact  spot  where  the  frag- 
ments of  his  dismembered  body  were  buried  will  probably 
never  be  known.  But  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that 
his  bones  rest  in  the  vicinity  of  his  home,  from  the  fact  that 
his  tenure  of  life  in  this  section  was  short;  that  he  was 
without  relatives  beyond  his  family  circle,  and  those  rel- 
atives continued  to  live  in  the  neighborhood.  The  mere 
fact  that  a  Governor  of  Georgia  could  come  here  and  be 
brutally  and  foully  murdered  by  Tories,  in  the  heat  of  war 
passions,  and  not  a  line  recorded  about  it,  in  any  South 
Carolina  history  or  newspaper  bearing  upon  that  period, 
should  open  our  eyes  to  the  danger  of  swallowing  the 
spurious  pill  offered  to  us  by  the  Emily  Geiger  extermina- 
tors. 

But  for  the  Georgia  records  and  a  straight  line  of 
descendants,  hereabouts,  the  Treutlen  individuality  and 
tradition  would  be  tabooed  as  a  "myth"  and  fabrication 
from  beginning  to  end.  Through  the  laudable  efforts  of 
the  local  D.  A.  R. — and  particularly  its  regent,  Mrs.  F.  C. 
Cain — a  "marker"  has  been  promised  from  the  quarter- 
master general's  office,  "Washington,  D.  C.  It  will  stand  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  ' '  Metts  Crossroads ' '  and  will  remind  the 
passerby  of  as  true  and  loyal  a  Whig  as  lived  during  those 
perilous  days. 

Treutlen 's  general  appearance,  even  in  repose,  as  ex- 
hibited in  an  old  photograph  now  in  the  possession  of  a  de- 
scendant, is  interesting.  The  orthodox  military  coat,  un- 
bottoned  and  spread  abroad  over  his  shoulders,  brings  into 
bold  relief  a  ' '  dicky ' '  shirt  front,  emerging  into  a  high  and 
ferocious  collar,  which  nestles  snugly  and  smugly  under  his 
lower  jaws.  There  is  a  profuse  shock  of  hair,  futilely  bom- 
barding an  obstinate  "cow-lick,"  the  whole  showing  little 


202  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

or  no  subserviency  to  comb  and  brush.  His  large,  piercing 
eyes,  fringed  by  shaggy  brows,  with  a  drooping  upper  lid, 
produces  a  sad,  if  not  sinister,  aspect.  The  nose  has  a  Ro- 
man slant,  which  meets  a  bold,  intellectual  forehead  in  an 
almost  unbroken  line.  Marked  cheek  bones  and  a  thin  face 
ease  down,  more  or  less  hastily,  to  a  sharp  and  angular 
chin.  A  pair  of  thin  lips,  closely  plastered  to  each  other, 
bespeak  firm  determination;  and  his  whole  contour  im- 
presses one,  forcibly,  that  he  was  not  a  safe  man  to  take  too 
many  liberties  with. 

As  intimated  at  the  outset,  there  is  an  interesting  rami- 
fication of  descendants  from  the  Treutlen  family,  many  of 
whom  are  still  living  in  Calhoun  County.  Some  have 
gained  prominence  in  Alabama,  Washington,  D.  C.,  and 
other  places,  but  I  will  note  only  those  of  local  (and  some, 
at  least,  of  state- wide)  interest.  There  were  three  sons 
and  three  daughters :  John  Adam  Treutlen,  Jr.,  Christian, 
Depew,  Mary,  Elizabeth  and  Hannah.  Mary  married 
Edward  Dudley.  From  this  union  was  born  Mary  Dudley, 
who  married  Adam  Amaker,  February  10,  1820,  and  from 
the  latter  was  born  Adam  Perry  Amaker,  who  married 
Augusta  Zimmerman,  and  they,  in  turn,  were  the  parents 
of  Perry  and  T.  A.  Amaker,  now  living — the  former  of 
Denver,  Col.,  and  the  latter  a  leading  business  man  of  St. 
Matthews.  Amanda  Amaker  (alive)  married  Major  Whit- 
marsh  Seabrook  Murray,  of  Edisto  Island,  who  recently 
died  here.  They  moved  to  this  place  after  the  war  and 
leave  many  descendants. 

Elizabeth  Treutlen,  another  daughter,  married  William 
Kennedy  and  from  them  descended  John  W.  Kennedy,  who 
resided  here  for  years,  and  now  at  Tyron,  N.  C.  His  only 
daughter,  Vernon,  married  Dr.  A.  McQueen  Salley,  origi- 
nally of  Orangeburg,  and  a  son  of  the  present  sheriff  of 
that  county,  now  of  Saluda,  N.  C.  John  Adam  Treutlen, 
Jr.,  married  Margaret  Miller.  Their  son,  Gabriel,  married 
Ann  Connor  and  to  them  was  born  Caroline  Treutlen,  who 
married  Jacob  Dantzler.  Their  son,  Col.  0.  M.  Dantzler, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  203 

of  Confederate  war  fame,  was  the  father  of  O.  M.  Dantzler, 
the  popular  sheriff  of  Calhoun  County,  who  recently  died ; 
Fred  and  Thos.  W.,  of  St.  Matthews;  Mortimer  O.,  of 
Orangeburg  and  Charles  G.,  an  eminent  jurist  (deceased.) 

Rachael  Treutlen,  daughter  of  John  Adam  Treutlen,  Jr, 
married  the  Rev.  J.  J.  Wannamaker,  of  St.  Matthews* 
From  this  union  were  born  Mary  Ann  (who  first  married 
Joel  Butler  and  later  William  Reeves)  and  W.  W.  Wan- 
namaker, deceased,  who  for  many  years  was  a  leading 
physician  of  this  community,  and  who  married  Adelia 
Keitt.  To  the  last  couple  was  born  Agelina,  who  married 
the  Rev.  Artemus  B.  Watson,  a  well  known  minister  of  the 
Methodist  Church,  who  died  recently.  Their  son,  Whit- 
field  W.  Watson,  married  May,  daughter  of  the  Hon. 
Samuel  J.  Dibble,  and  a  daughter  Adele  Watson,  deceased, 
married  A.  C.  Hane,  Fort  Motte.  Other  children  of  Dr.  W. 
W.  Wannamaker  were:  John  Keitt,  who  married  Chloe 
Watson,  both  dead.  He  bequeathed  $20,000  for  a  Methodist 
Church  here.  W.  W.  Wannamaker,  a  successful  farmer  of 
this  community,  who  married  Lou  Banks,  deceased.  A  son 
bears  the  honored  patronymic  of  ''Treutlen."  Mary  B. 
Wannamaker,  deceased,  who  married  Dr.  W.  T.  C.  Bates, 
of  St.  Matthews,  the  well  known  ex-State  Treasurer. 

Emma  C.,  a  daughter  of  Rev.  J.  J.  Wannamaker,  mar- 
ried Dr.  W.  L.  Pou,  an  eminent  physician  of  St.  Matthews, 
now  84  years  old,  and  who  has  been  actively  practicing  his 
profession  for  over  60  years.  A  daughter  of  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Pou,  Emma,  deceased,  married  A.  K.  Smoke,  a  prominent 
and  influential  citizen  of  this  town,  while  Blanche,  another 
daughter,  is  living,  and  the  joy  and  pride  of  her  aged  par- 
ents. A  son  of  Rev.  J.  J.  Wannamaker  and  Rachael  Treut- 
len, his  wife,  was  Capt.  Francis  M.,  deceased,  a  noted  lawyer 
in  his  day,  who  married  Eleanor  Bellinger,  of  Bamberg. 
From  the  last  couple  were  born  the  following:  Jennie  B., 
who  married  J.  B.  Tyler,  of  Georgia,  both  dead ;  Mary  B., 
deceased,  who  married  J.  H.  Henagan,  of  St.  Matthews: 
Rachael  Treutlen,  who  married  H.  A.  Raysor,  a  successful 


204  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

merchant  and  prominent  citizen  of  St.  Matthews;  J.  S. 
Kottowe,  a  leading  banker  and  merchant  of  St.  Matthews, 
who  married  Lillian  Salley,  of  Orangeburg;  Francis  M., 
who  married  the  writer;  William  H.,  professor  of  German 
in  Trinity  College,  N.  C.,  who  married  Isabella  Stringf el- 
low,  of  Chester,  and  Olin  M.,  professor  of  English  in  the 
Alabama  Polytechnic  College  at  Auburn,  who  married 
Katherine  Hume,  of  New  Haven,  Conn. 


JOHN  MARTIN. 

When  quite  a  little  boy  in  his  home  in  Caroline 
County,  Virginia,  John  Martin  adopted  as  his  motto:  "I 
will  do  my  best. ' '  It  helped  him  even  in  childhood  to  have 
this  motto,  for  whenever  he  had  any  diffcult  task  to  per- 
form, either  at  home  or  school,  he  remembered  his  motto 
and  did  his  best. 

In  his  veins  flowed  the  blood  of  a  noble  ancestry  and 
many  sterling  merited  qualities  helped  him  in  the  forma- 
tion of  a  manly  character. 

He  was  born  in  1751,  amid  turbulent  scenes  in  Virginia, 
for  the  Indians  were  frequently  incited  by  the  French  to 
commit  deeds  of  violence  and  cruelty  upon  the  English 
colonists,  and  in  consequence  of  this,  his  early  impressions 
were  of  preparations  for  war.  At  a  tender  age  John  wit- 
nessed the  departure  of  his  father,  Abner  Martin,  to  join 
Colonel  Washington  on  his  way  to  Fort  Duquesne.  He  saw 
him  buckle  on  his  sword  and  sabre  and  mount  his  charger 
and  set  his  face  towards  the  Ohio  Valley.  And  after  that 
parting  he  experienced  some  of  the  horrors  of  war,  for  in 
the  silent  hour  of  night,  the  stealthy  tread  of  the  Indian 
noiselessly  approached  the  Martin  plantation  and  applied 
the  torch  to  the  barns  and  outhouses,  and  morning  found 
them  in  ruins.  He  shared  the  general  feeling  of  uneasi- 
ness and  insecurity  that  had  settled  down  upon  the  home 
circle  in  consequence  of  his  father's  absence,  and  his  grand- 
father's illness.  His  mother  at  this  time  was  for  him  his 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  205 

tower  of  strength,  and  his  ark  of  safety,  for  she  it  was  who 
devised  means  for  their  protection  and  safety.  As  he  grew 
older  and  thought  upon  these  stirring  scenes,  no  wonder  that 
his  martial  spirit  was  stirred  within  him  and  that  he 
resolved  ' '  some  day  I  '11  go  too,  and  I  can  if  I  do  my  best, ' ' 
and  he  did. 

About  1768,  the  Martin  family  removed  from  Virginia 
to  South  Carolina  and  settled  at  Edgefield.  The  sons  were 
sent  to  Virginia  to  be  educated,  and  it  was  there  that  John 
formed  a  close  personal  friendship  for  George  Washington, 
which  ripened  with  the  coming  years.  When  the  war  for 
American  Independence  was  declared,  John  Martin,  and 
his  seven  brothers,  all  officers,  had  his  life 's  desire  fulfilled, 
and  following  the  footsteps  of  his  father  saw  service  in  the 
defence  of  his  country.  He  also  served  with  distinction  in 
the  state  legislature  and  afterward  was  made  General  in 
command  of  the  South  Carolina  state  troops.  He  married 
Elizabeth,  the  daughter  of  Colonel  Nathaniel  Terry,  of 
Virginia.  Many  years  later  General  John  Martin  was  on 
a  visit  to  his  son  Marshall  Martin,  in  Meriwether  County, 
Georgia  at  the  time  when  Georgia  was  called  upon  to  fur- 
nish her  quota  of  troops  for  the  war  of  1812.  John  Martin 
was  then  70  years  old  and  still  the  fires  of  patriotism  were 
not  extinguished  nor  the  love  of  battle  front  subdued. 

The  talk  of  another  war  with  England  made  him  forget 
his  years,  and  his  infirmities,  and  as  his  son  Marshall  re- 
counted the  probabilities  of  renewed  encounters,  and  spoke 
of  his  own  enlistment,  the  old  "war  horse  sniffing  the  battle 
from  afar,"  exclaimed  excitedly,  "My  son  let  me  go  in  your 
stead." 

Afteh  this  visit  John  Martin  returned  to  his  Edgefield 
home,  where  he  died  in  1820. 

Boys  and  girls  who  would  develop  fine  character  must 
have  high  ideals  even  in  childhood.  "Sow  a  thought  and 
you  reap  a  habit,  sow  a  habit  and  you  reap  a  character, 
sow  a  character  and  you  reap  a  destiny" — M.  M.  PARK, 
David  Meriwether  Chapter,  D.  A.  B.,  Greenville. 


206  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


JOHN  STARK,  REVOLUTIONARY  SOLDIER. 

The  victory  of  the  little  band  of  patriots  at  Bennington 
early  in  the  Revolutionary  War  made  John  Stark  famous, 
and  shortly  afterward  he  was  christened  "Old  Benning- 
ton, ' '  first  by  the  soldiers  and  then  by  the  American  colon- 
ists generally.  At  the  time  of  the  victory  Stark  was  close 
to  fifty  years  of  age,  and  had  had  a  long  and  distinguished 
career  as  an  Indian  fighter. 

In  early  life  John  Stark  was  a  New  Hampshire  farmer, 
and  in  that  state  he  was  born  of  Irish  parents,  and  there  he 
died  in  1822,  at  the  advanced  age  of  94.  His  farm  was 
located  in  the  wildest  part  of  the  forest  country  of  New 
Hampshire,  and  Indian  fighting  was  a  hobby  with  him. 
Several  years  prior  to  the  Revolution  he  and  his  little  band 
of  frontiersmen  had  succeeded  in  driving  the  Indians  from 
their  neighborhood,  so  that  they  were  no  longer  troubled 
with  them.  Then  for  several  years  Stark  settled  down  to 
the  enjoyment  of  farm  life.  At  this  vocation  he  continued 
until  tidings  reached  him  of  the  battle  of  Lexington. 

Promptly  upon  the  receipt  of  this  news  he  mounted  his 
horse,  and  at  the  head  of  several  hundred  of  his  neighbors, 
set  out  to  join  the  Colonial  Army  at  Cambridge.  Upon  his 
arrival  there  he  was  appointed  a  colonel,  and  in  one  day  he 
had  organized  a  regiment  of  800  hardy  backswoodsmen. 

Then  came  the  memorable  Bunker  Hill  day.  Stark  and 
his  men  were  stationed  a  few  miles  away  from  the  scene  of 
this  conflict,  but  in  full  sight  of  both  Bunker  and  Breed's 
hills.  Seeing  that  a  battle  was  inevitable,  he  waited  for 
no  orders,  but  set  out  at  once  for  the  ground,  which  he 
reached  just  before  the  conflict  began.  He  led  his  men 
into  the  fight  saying :  ' '  Boys  aim  at  their  waistbands, ' '  an 
order  that  has  become  historical. 

In  the  heat  of  this  action  a  soldier  came  to  Stark  with 
the  report  that  his  son,  a  youth  of  16,  who  was  with  him  on 
the  field  had  been  killed. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  207 

' '  This  is  not  the  moment  to  talk  of  private  affairs, ' '  was 
the  grim  reply ;  ' '  go  back  to  your  post. ' ' 

As  it  proved,  the  report  was  false,  and  young  Stark 
served  as  a  staff  officer  through  the  war. 

After  the  patriots  were  compelled  to  evacuate  Boston, 
Stark  marched  with  his  regiment  to  New  York,  but  was 
shortly  directed  to  take  part  in  the  ill-starred  expedition 
against  Canada.  The  retreating  army  reached  Ticonderoga 
on  the  7th  of  July.  Here  on  the  following  day  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence  reached  the  soldiers  in  the  field  and 
Col.  Stark  had  the  satisfaction,  on  the  scene  of  his  former 
exploits,  to  hear  the  proclamation  read  to  his  cheering 
troops. 

Then  Gen.  Stark  proceeded  south  to  assist  Washington 
and  to  gain  his  full  share  of  applause  in  the  battle  of 
Trenton.  In  March,  1777,  he  returned  to  his  native  state  to 
recruit  the  ranks  of  his  regiment,  and  while  there  news 
came  to  him  that  a  new  list  of  promotions  had  been  made 
in  which  his  name  was  omitted,  while  younger  officers  had 
been  advanced  in  rank.  This  injustice  he  bitterly  resented 
and  resigned  from  the  army  and  retired  to  his  farm. 

But  Stark  was  still  the  patriot  and  when  the  informa- 
tion reached  him  that  the  enemy  were  moving  south  from 
Canada,  and  that  Gen.  St.  Clair  had  retreated  and  that 
Ticonderoga  had  been  captured,  New  Hampshire  flew  to 
arms  and  called  for  Stark  to  command  her  troops. 

Stark  was  at  Bennington  when  he  learned  that  a  detach- 
ment of  six  hundred  men  under  Col.  Baum  had  been  dis- 
patched by  Burgoyne  on  a  foraging  expedition  in  that 
section,  sending  a  party  of  Indians  in  advance  on  a  scout- 
ing raid.  Upon  learning  of  this  Stark  sent  out  expresses 
to  call  in  the  militia  of  the  nighborhood,  he  marched  out  to 
meet  Baum,  who  entrenched  himself  in  a  strong  position 
about  six  miles  from  Bennington. 

This  was  on  the  14th  of  August.  A  few  miles  out  he 
met  Lieut.-Col.  Gregg  retreating,  with  the  enemy  close  at 
hand.  Stark  at  once  halted  and  drew  up  his  men  in  order 


208  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

of  battle.  The  enemy,  seeing  this,  at  once  stopped  also  and 
entrenched  themselves.  Thus  the  armies  remained  for  two 
days,  contenting  themselves  with  skirmishing,  in  which  the 
Americans  had  much  the  best  of  the  game.  Baum's  In- 
dians began  to  desert,  saying  that  "the  woods  were  filled 
with  Yankees." 

On  the  morning  of  the  sixteenth  Stark  prepared  for 
an  attack.  Before  advancing  he  addressed  his  men  with 
that  brief  but  telling  address  which  has  made  his  name 
historic :  ' '  There  are  the  red  coats ;  we  must  beat  them  to- 
day or  to-night  Molly  Stark  sleeps  a  widow. ' ' 

They  beat  them  and  "Molly"  had  the  satisfaction  of 
long  enjoying  the  fame  that  came  to  John,  instead  of 
wearing  the  widow's  weeds.  The  victory  was  decisive  and 
by  a  band  of  raw  militia,  poorly  armed  and  without  dis- 
cipline, but  led  by  one  of  the  most  fearless  men  of  the 
revolution. 

Of  the  one  thousand  British  soldiers  engaged  in  this 
fight,  not  more  than  a  hundred  escaped,  and  it  was  this 
victory  of  "Old  Bennington"  which  led  ultimately  to  the 
surrender  of  Burgoyne  at  Saratoga.  Col.  Baum,  who  was 
mortally  wounded,  said  of  the  provisionals,  "They  fought 
more  like  hell-hounds  than  like  soldiers."  Washington 
spoke  of  the  engagement  as  "the  great  stroke  struck  by 
Gen.  Stark  near  Bennington."  and  Baroness  Riedessel,  then 
in  the  British  camp,  wrote :  ' '  This  unfortunate  event  para- 
lyzed our  operations. ' ' 

"Old  Bennington"  was  a  splendid  type  of  the  class 
of  men  who  gave  success  to  the  American  Revolution. 
Congress,  after  Bennington,  hastened  to  repair  its  former 
action  by  appointing  Stark  a  brigadier-general,  and  he 
continued  in  the  army  till  the  end  of  the  war.  He  lived 
to  see  the  country  firmly  established,  and  when  he  died  in 
1822  he  was  buried  on  the  banks  of  the  Merrimae  River  at 
Manchester. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  209 

BENJAMIN   FRANKLIN. 
BY  GEORGE  FITCH, 

Benjamin  Franklin  was  an  ordinary  man  with  an  ex- 
traordinary supply  of  common  sense  who  flourished  in  the 
eighteenth  century  and  is  still  regarded  as  one  of  the 
finest  of  American  products. 

Franklin  was  born  in  Boston,  but  was  one  of  the  few 
Boston  wise  men  to  succeed  in  getting  away  from  that 
city.  His  family  was  not  distinguished  and  when  he  left 
Boston,  after  having  run  a  newspaper  with  more  brilliance 
than  success,  no  committee  of  city  officials  appeared  to  bid 
him  goodbye. 

Franklin  arrived  in  Philadelphia  with  enough  money 
left  to  buy  two  rolls  of  bread  and  paraded  the  town  wear- 
ing one  loaf  under  his  arm  and  eating  the  other.  This 
successfully  quarantined  him  from  Philadelphia  society 
and  he  was  enabled  to  put  all  his  time  into  the  printing 
business  with  such  success  that  he  was  sent  to  London  in 
1824  by  the  governor  to  get  a  printing  outfit.  He  worked 
for  eighteen  months  in  a  London  printing  house  and  was 
probably  the  most  eminent  employee  that  London  Journal- 
ism ever  had,  though  England  has  not  yet  waked  up  to 
this  fact. 

Franklin  then  returned  to  Philadelphia  and  purchased 
The  Gazette,  which  he  began  to  edit  with  such  success  that 
he  frequently  had  to  spend  all  day  making  change  for  eager 
subscribers.  It  might  be  well  to  mention  here  that  at  this 
time  he  was  only  23  years  old,  having  been  born  January 
17,  1706,  and  having  been  a  full-fledged  editor  at  the  age 
of  15.  Genius  often  consists  in  getting  an  early  start  and 
keeping  started. 

At  the  age  of  26  Franklin's  "Poor  Richard's  Alma- 
nac, ' '  the  sayings  of  a  wise  old  man,  had  the  largest  circula- 
tion of  anything  printed  in  the  Colonies,  and  people  sought 
his  advice  on  everything  from  love  to  chicken  raising.  At 


210  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

the  age  of  31  he  was  a  member  of  the  Pennsylvania  Assem- 
bly. At  40  he  had  diagnosed  lightning  and  had  exhibited 
the  first  electricity  ever  in  captivity  in  a  bottle,  having 
caught  it  with  a  kite  string  and  a  key.  He  had  also  charted 
the  course  of  North  American  storms,  and  explained  the 
gulf  stream. 

Franklin  helped  the  Colonies  to  declare  their  independ- 
ence and  secured  the  treaty  of  alliance  with  France.  At 
79  he  was  elected  governor  of  Pennsylvania.  At  82  he 
helped  write  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States.  He 
also  devised  the  American  postal  system.  He  died  at  the 
age  of  84,  and  Philadelphia  is  prouder  of  his  tombstone 
than  she  is  of  the  Liberty  Bell. 

Through  all  his  long  and  busy  life  Franklin  never  had 
time  to  dress  up  and  adopt  the  social  usages  of  his  day. 
But  this  did  not  prevent  him  from  dazzling  the  exquisite 
court  of  France  at  its  most  brilliant  and  useless  period.  He 
was  one  of  the  few  men  who  gave  to  the  earth  more  wisdom 
than  he  absorbed  from  it,  but  he  never  was  a  bonanza  for 
the  tailors.  Had  he  spent  his  youth  keeping  four  tailors 
and  three  haberdashers  in  affluence,  Franklin  relics  would 
probably  not  command  the  high  price  which  they  now  do. 


211 


CAPTAIN  MUGFORD  RAN  THE  BRITISH  BLOCK- 
ADE AND  CAPTURED  POWDER  SHIP. 

Had  Great  Britain  made  peace  with  the  American 
colonies  after  the  British  army  had  been  driven  from 
Boston,  James  Mugford  would  be  a  popular  hero  today. 
But  Great  Britain  continued  the  war  for  eight  long  years, 
and  so  many  heroes  were  made  that  the  name  of  Jamea 
Mugford,  "the  world  forgetting,  and  by  the  world  for- 
got," was  lost. 

Mugford  died  in  1776.  He  and  his  27  companions  were 
attacked  by  200  British  marines.  They  fought  most  all 
night,  and  the  British  were  whipped,  but  the  gallant  cap- 
tain was  killed  by  a  pike  thrust. 

The  British  under  General  Gage  evacuated  Boston,  in 
March,  1776.  The  British  fleet  remained  behind  in  Boston 
to  blockade  the  port.  General  "Washington  hurried  to  New 
York  with  the  main  Colonial  army  to  dispute  the  proposed 
British  landing  there.  General  Artemas  "Ward  was  left 
in  command  of  a  pretty  sizeable  American  army  around 
Boston;  but  Washington  had  taken  all  the  powder  and 
most  of  the  guns. 

The  Americans  were  at  the  mercy  of  the  British  ships, 
only  the  British  didn't  know  it.  General  Ward  zealously 
guarded  the  fact  that  his  powder  supply  was  nil,  and 
planned  to  fill  his  magazines  at  the  invader's  expense. 

Accordingly  two  small  ships,  the  schooners  Hancock 
and  Franklin,  were  outfitted  and  ordered  to  sea  for  the 
purpose  of  capturing  a  supply  ship.  Captain  Samuel 
Tucker  commanded  the  Hancock.  James  Mugford,  a  citi- 
zen of  Marblehead,  Mass.,  was  appointed  master  of  the 
Franklin.  His  vessel  carried  a  crew  of  21,  including  him- 
self. 

On  May  7  Captain  Tucker  captured  two  brigs  laden 
with  valuable  supplies ;  but  no  powder.  He  took  his  prized 
to  Lynn.  General  Ward  communicated  with  Captain  Mug- 


212  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

ford  and  explained  to  him  the  desperate  straits  the  army 
was  fronting. 

"I'll  get  some  powder,"  said  the  short-spoken  Marble* 
head.  And  he  did. 

The  British  ship  Hope,  carrying  war  munitions  for  the 
British,  was  due.  It  had  powder  for  the  Beet.  Captain 
Mugford  heard  of  its  expected  arrival  and  put  to  sea. 

Almost  within  sight  of  the  British  fleet  he  met  the  Hope 
and  captured  it.  But  how  to  land  the  prize?  He  didn't 
have  men  enough  to  take  it  to  Lynn  or  any  other  port  very 
distant.  The  British  fleet  lay  between  him  and  the  Ameri- 
can army  in  Boston. 

Captain  Mugford  chose  to  run  the  British  blockade 
and  fight  the  whole  fleet  of  a  dozen  ships  or  more,  if  neces- 
sary. He  put  a  few  of  his  best  men  aboard  the  Hope  and 
made  the  British  crew  sail  it.  Then,  in  the  Franklin,  he 
arrogantly  sailed  toward  the  British  fleet  and  dropped  a 
few  cannon  balls  its  way. 

The  British  were  astounded.  What  could  this  crazy 
skipper  mean  by  attacking  a  fleet  with  one  dinky  little 
schooner  ?  They  would  teach  him  a  lesson.  The  whole  fleet 
maneuvered  round  to  blow  the  Franklin  off  the  bay.  Mean- 
while the  Hope  sneaked  in  the  harbor,  and  then  Captain 
Mugford  outsailed  the  British  fleet  and  got  in  himself.  In 
the  hold  of  the  Hope  the  Americans  found  75  tons  of  pow- 
der and  other  war  stores  needed  just  then  more  than  men 
or  gold.  Mugford  had  made  good  his  word. 

Very  naturally  the  British  were  angry.  The  admiral 
issued  an  order  that  James  Mugford  was  to  be  captured  by 
any  hook  or  crook  and  promptly  killed.  Somebody  told 
Captain  Mugford  about  the  order. 

' '  Oh,  piffle ! "  he  said,  or  something  like  that.  "  I  '11  run 
by  his  derned  old  fleet  every  day  in  the  week  and  twice  on 
Sunday  if  I  want." 

The  Sunday  following,  May  19,  1776,  Captain  Mugford, 
in  the  Franklin,  with  21  men,  and  Captain  Cunningham,  in 
the  privateer  Lady  Washington,  a  vessel  carrying  seven 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  213 

men  and  a  few  small  swivel  guns,  started  to  puncture 
the  British  blockade  again.  They  would  have  succeeded, 
but  the  Franklin  grounded.  A  flotilla  of  small  boats  from 
the  fleet,  carrying  200  well-armed  men,  started  for  the 
attack.  Captain  Cunningham  refused  to  leave  his  com- 
panion, so  both  he  and  Captain  Mugford  prepared  for 
battle. 

It  was  a  fiercely  fought  contest  and  lasted  the  better 
part  of  the  night.  On  May  20  General  Ward  made  the  fol- 
lowing report  of  the  engagement: 

"Captain  Mugford  was  very  fiercely  attacked  by  12  or 
13  boats  full  of  men,  but  he  and  his  men  exerted  themselves 
with  remarkable  bravery,  beat  off  the  enemy,  sunk  several 
of  their  boats  and  killed  a  number  of  their  men ;  it  is  sup- 
posed they  lost  60  or  70.  The  intrepid  Captain  Mugford 
fell  a  little  before  the  enemy  left  his  schooner.  He  was 
run  through  with  a  lance  while  he  was  cutting  off  the  hands 
of  the  pirates  as  they  were  attempting  to  board  him,  and 
it  is  said  that  with  his  own  hands  he  cut  off  five  pairs  of 
theirs.  No  other  man  was  killed  or  wounded  on  the 
Franklin. — Kansas  City  Star. 


214  REVOLUTIONARY  READE& 


GOVERNOR  JOHN   CLARKE. 

Among  the  historical  sketches  penned  by  Miss  Annie  M. 
Lane  for  the  American  Journal  of  History,  that  touching 
the  life  of  Governor  John  Clarke,  received  the  highest 
award,  and  through  the  kindness  of  the  author  we  are  per- 
mitted to  reproduce  it. 

"Why  are  the  dead  not  dead?     Who  can  undo 
What  time  has  done  ?    Who  can  win  back  the  wind  ? 
Beckon  lost  music  from  a  broken  lute1? 
Renew  the  redness  of  a  last  year's  rose? 
Or  dig  the  sunken  sun-set  from  the  deep1?" 

I  sometimes  think  there  are  more  interesting  things  and 
people  under  the  ground  than  above  it,  yet  we  who  are 
above  it  do  not  want  to  go  below  it  to  get  acquainted  with 
them,  but  if  we  can  find  out  anything  from  the  outside  we 
enjoy  it.  In  a  previous  article,  I  said  there  was  no  spot  in 
Georgia  so  full  of  buried  romance  as  Wilkes  County,  and 
no  manuscript  so  fascinating  as  the  musty  and  yellow  old 
records  of  a  hundred  years  ago,  which  lie  unmolested  in 
our  courthouse,  especially  those  of  1777. 

One  cannot  but  feel  after  reading  these  books  that  he 
has  been  face  to  face  with  the  grand  old  gentlemen  of  Revo- 
lutionary days :  the  men  who  walked  our  streets  with  their 
ruffled  shirts — three-cornered  hats  and  dangling  swords — 
yet  so  different  are  they  in  personality  and  character  that 
the  weaving  together  of  their  lives  makes  to  me  a  grand  and 
beautiful  fabric,  "a  tapestry  or  reminiscent  threads." 
Some  rich,  some  dark  and  sombre  in  shade,  making  a 
background  so  fitting  for  the  crimson  and  purple  and  gold 
— for  the  conspicuous,  inflaming  color  of  impetuous 
natures,  toned  down  with  characters  as  white  and  cool  as 
the  snowflakes  which  fall  upon  our  Southern  violets. 

You  have  but  to  close  your  eyes  to  the  scene  of  today 
to  recall  ex-Governor  Talbot,  Governor  Matthews,  General 
Clarke,  together  with  Jesse  Mercer,  Mr.  Springer  and 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  215 

Duncan  C.  Campbell,  who  were  familiar  figures  once  upon 
the  streets  of  Washington. 

In  the  painting  of  character  sketches  we  would  not  do 
the  individual  justice  if  we  did  not  remember  his  environ- 
ments, and  above  all  his  inherited  nature,  for  are  we  not 
all  bound  by  heredity  ?  My  last  sketch  was  of  Jesse  Mercer, 
now  it  is  of  John  Clarke.  How  striking  the  contrast.  The 
life  of  Jesse  Mercer  was  as  quiet  and  majestic  as  was  his 
nature.  John  Clarke  just  three  years  his  senior,  born  and 
reared  at  no  great  distance  had  a  life  of  adventure.  He  was 
the  son  of  our  stalwart  General  Elijah  Clarke  and  his  wife, 
Hannah,  and  was  the  youngest  soldier  whose  name  appears 
upon  the  roster  of  Kettle  Creek,  being  13  years  of  age. 
(Battle  of  Kettle  Creek,  1779,  John  Clarke,  born  1766.) 

I  will  refer  you  to  history  to  convince  you  of  how  his 
whole  nature  was  fired  by  the  blood  within  his  veins,  in- 
herited from  both  mother  and  father.  He  came  of  fighting 
stock  in  a  fighting  age !  In  "White's  Historical  Collections 
of  Georgia,"  there  is  an  account  of  the  life  of  Hannah 
Clarke,  who  survived  her  husband,  Elijah  Clarke,  twenty 
years,  dying  at  the  age  of  90  (in  1829.)  The  burning  of 
her  house  by  a  party  of  British  and  Tories  is  recorded,  and 
the  turning  out  of  herself  and  children  while  General 
Clarke  was  away. 

When  General  Clarke  was  so  desperately  wounded  at 
Long  Cane  in  Carolina,  she  started  to  him  and  was  robbed 
of  the  horse  on  which  she  was  riding.  On  one  campaign 
she  accompanied  him  and  when  she  was  moving  from  a 
place  of  danger,  the  horse  on  which  she  and  two  of  her 
younger  children  were  riding  was  shot  from  under  her. 
Later,  she  was  at  the  siege  of  Augusta.  All  this  time 
General  Elijah  Clarke's  right  hand  man  was  young  John. 
Being  reared  in  the  army,  this  boy  became  wild  and  in- 
petuous;  by  nature  he  was  intense,  so  when  cupid's  dart 
entered  his  heart  it  was  inflamed  as  deeply  with  love  as 
it  had  been  with  hatred  for  the  British.  His  love  story  ends 


216  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

with  Meredith's  words,  "Whom  first  we  love,  we  seldom 
wed." 

About  four  miles  from  the  hill  on  which  the  little  battle 
of  Kettle  Creek  was  fought,  there  lived  an  orphan  girl, 
the  stepdaughter  of  Artnial  Weaver,  and  the  youngest  sis- 
ter of  Sabina  Chivers,  who  married  Jesse  Mercer.  John 
Clarke  loved  this  girl,  but  there  was  opposition  to  the  un- 
ion. But  as  yet  not  knowing  the  meaning  of  the  word 
defeat,  he  induced  her  to  elope  with  him. 

It  was  his  thought  to  take  her  to  the  home  of  a  friend 
of  his  father's,  Daniel  Marshall,  near  Kiokee,  but  the 
weather  was  severe,  and  a  snowstorm  set  in.  They  were 
compelled  to  stop  at  a  farm  house  where  lived  the  mother 
of  Major  Freeman  (related  to  Dr.  S.  G.  Hillyer.)  Miss 
Chivers  was  taken  ill  that  night  with  congestion  of  the 
lungs,  and  died.  In  the  absence  of  flowers  the  good  woman 
of  the  house  adorned  the  dead  girl  with  bunches  of  holly, 
entwined  them  in  her  beautiful  black  hair  and  placed  them 
in  her  clasped  hands.  The  grave  they  covered  with  the 
same  beautiful  crimson  and  green  holly,  upon  which  the 
snow  recently  fell.  This  was  the  first  real  sorrow  in  the 
life  of  John  Clarke,  and  many  were  to  follow. 

To  some  the  years  come  and  go  like  beautiful  dreams, 
and  life  seems  only  as  a  fairy  tale  that  is  told,  yet  there 
are  natures  for  which  this  cannot  be.  Some  hands  reach 
forth  too  eagerly  to  cull  life's  sweet,  fair  flowers,  and  often 
grasp  hidden  thorns.  Feet  that  go  with  quick,  fearless 
steps  are  most  apt  to  be  wounded  by  jutting  stones,  and 
alas!  John  Clarke  found  them  where  'er  he  went  through 
life 's  bright  sunlight  or  its  shaded  paths,  these  cruel,  sharp 
piercing  thorns;  those  hard,  cold,  hurting  stones. 

We  next  see  John  Clarke  just  before  he  enters  into 
his  political  life.  From  ' '  The  History  of  Wilkes  County, ' ' 
in  our  library,  I  copy  the  following,  viz:  "Micajah  Wil- 
liamson kept  a  licensed  tavern  in  the  town  of  Washington — 
on  record,  we  find  that  he  sold  with  meals,  drinks  as  fol- 
lows: Good  Jamaica  spirits,  per  gill,  2d;  good  Madeira 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  217 

wine,  per  bottle,  4s  8d;  all  white  wines,  per  bottle,  3s  6d; 
port,  per  bottle,  Is  9d ;  good  whiskey  and  brandy,  per  gill, 
6d  &  C.  &  C.  at  that  time  a  shilling  was  really  22c.,  a  penny 
7-5  of  a  cent." 

In  front  of  this  tavern  was  a  large  picture  of  George 
Washington  hanging  as  a  swinging  sign.  John  Clarke  used 
to  come  to  town,  and  like  most  men  of  his  day  got 
drunk.  They  all  did  not  "cut  up,"  however,  as  he  did  on 
such  occasions.  He  went  into  stores  and  smashed  things 
generally,  as  tradition  says,  but  he  always  came  back  and 
paid  for  them  like  a  gentleman.  Once  he  came  into  town 
intoxicated  and  galloped  down  Court  street  and  fired 
through  the  picture  of  General  Washington  before  the 
tavern  door.  This  was  brought  up  against  him  later  when 
he  was  a  candidate  for  governor,  but  his  friends  denied  it. 

Soon  after  this  he  married  the  oldest  daughter  of 
Micajah  Williamson,  while  Duncan  C.  Campbell  married 
the  youngest. 

The  stirring  events  which  followed  we  have  all  learned 
in  history,  how  the  state  was  divided  into  two  factions,  the 
Clarkeites  and  those  for  Crawford  and  Troup.  The  state 
was  so  evenly  divided  that  the  fight  was  fierce.  The  com- 
mon people  and  owners  of  small  farms  were  for  Clarke,  the 
"gentry"  and  well-to-do  educated  folk  for  Crawford,  and 
sent  him  to  the  United  States  Senate.  Clarke  and  Craw- 
ford from  youth  had  been  antagonistic.  Clarke,  while  un- 
educated, was  brilliantly  intelligent,  but  deeply  sensitive. 
Crawford  was  polished  and  of  courtly  bearing,  a  man  of 
education,  but  was  very  overbearing.  Had  he  lived  today 
our  public  school  boy  would  say  "he  was  always  nagging 
at  Clarke. "  Be  that  as  it  may,  it  was  nip  and  tuck  between 
them  in  the  gubernational  campaign.  Clarke  fought  a  duel 
with  Crawford  at  High  Shoals,  and  shattered  his  wrist. 
Later  he  tried  to  get  Crawford  to  meet  him  again,  but  he 
persistently  refused.  One  ugly  thing  to  me  was  the  horse- 
whipping of  Judge  Tate  by  Governor  Clarke  on  the  streets 
of  Milledgeville,  then  the  capital.  This  did  Clarke  no  good. 


218  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

General  Clarke  twice  defeated  Mr.  Troup  for  governor. 
Troup  was  at  last  elected,  defeating  Matthew  Talbot,  who 
was  on  Clarke's  side  in  1823.  General  Clarke  was  defeated 
by  Talbot  himself.  There  is  never  an  article  written  about 
Clarke  that  his  bad  spelling  is  not  referred  to.  Not  long 
ago  I  read  in  a  magazine  published  in  Georgia  that  Clarke 
spelled  coffee  "kaughphy."  This  is  not  true,  that  honor 
belongs  to  Matthews,  another  one  of  the  familiar  figures 
once  on  the  streets  of  Washington.  Even  the  best  educated 
of  our  Revolutionary  heroes  did  not  spell  correctly  as  we 
call  it,  from  George  "Washington  down. 

I  rather  enjoy  their  license  for  I  think  English  spelling 
is  a  tyrannical  imposition.  After  the  defeat  of  Clarke  the 
tide  was  against  him.  Many  untrue  things  were  said  about 
him  and  they  cut  him  deeply.  He  was  misunderstood 
often,  and  in  chagrin  he  left  the  state. 

Rise,  0  Muse,  in  the  wrath  of  thy  rapture  divine, 
And  sweep  with  a  finger  of  fame  every  line 
Till  it  tremble  and  burn  as  thine  own  glances  burn 
Through  the  vision  thou  kindlest  wherein  I  discern 
All  the  unconcious  cruelty  hid  in  the  heart 
Of  mankind;  all  the  limitless  grief  we  impart 
Unawares  to  each  other;  the  limitless  wrong 
We  inflict  without  need,  as  we  hurry  along 
In  this  boisterous  pastime  of  life. 

Beneath  the  rough  exterior  there  never  beat  a  kinder 
heart  than  that  in  the  breast  of  John  Clarke.  Although  he 
had  the  brusque  manner  of  a  soldier  of  Revolutionary  days, 
with  those  he  loved  he  was  as  tender  and  gentle  as  a  child. 
On  one  occasion  soon  after  his  first  election  to  the  governor- 
ship of  Georgia  there  was  a  banquet  given  in  his  honor. 
The  decorations  on  the  white  linen  of  the  table  were  wreaths 
of  holly,  thought  to  be  very  beautiful  and  tasty.  When  the 
governor  entered  with  his  friends  he  stopped  stock  still  in 
the  doorway  turning  deathly  pale.  He  ordered  every  piece 
of  holly  dashed  from  the  window.  The  occurrence  was 
spread  far  and  wide  all  over  the  state  and  criticism  ran 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  219 

high,  and  even  his  friends  disapproved  of  the  uncivil  act 
of  one  in  his  high  station.  He  never  made  an  explanation 
until  years  afterwards. 

Memories  with  him  did  not  die,  though  beneath  the 
ashes  of  the  silent  past.  If  he  might  call  them  dead,  and 
bury  them,  it  seems  they  only  slept,  and  ere  he  knew,  at  but 
a  word,  a  breath,  the  softest  sigh,  they  woke  once  more 
and  moved  here  as  he  thought  they  would  not  evermore. 
Clarke  owned  large  tracts  of  land  in  Wilkes  county  (be- 
fore it  was  cut  up  into  other  counties.)  One  deed  is  made 
to  Wylie  Pope  in  1806.  He  reserves  twenty  feet  where  his 
two  children  are  buried,  Elijah  Clarke  and  George  Walton 
Clarke.  Leaving  Georgia  he  settled  in  Washington  county, 
Florida,  on  the  shores  of  the  beautiful  "Old  Saint  An- 
drews. ' '  Here  he  entertained  his  friends  and  here  he  spent 
the  last  ten  years  of  his  life  within  the  sound  of  the  rest- 
less, surging  waters  of  the  gulf.  October  12th,  1832,  Gov- 
ernor Clarke  passed  from  this  life,  and  eight  days  later  his 
wife  joined  him  in  the  Great  Beyond.  They  were  buried 
near  the  seashore  in  a  beautiful  grove  of  live  oaks,  and  a 
marble  shaft  erected  over  them  bears  the  following  inscrip- 
tion: 

Here  reposes  the  remains  of 

John  Clarke 
Late  Governor  of  Georgia 

And 

Nancy  Clarke 
His  Wife 

( NORTH  FACE  OF  MONUMENT) 

John  Clarke 
Born  Feb.  28th,  1760 
Died  October  12th,  1832 
As  an  officer  he  was  vigilant  and  brave 
As  a  statesman  energetic  and  faithful 
As  a  father  and  friend  devoted  and  sincere. 

(WEST  FACE) 

This  monument  was  erected  hy  their  surviving  children,  Ann 
Campbell  and  Wylie  P.  Clarke. 


220  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Not  far  from  the  monument  are  two  little  graves  with 
flat  slabs  and  the  following  inscription : 

Erected  to  the  memory  of  John  W.  and  Ann  W.  Campbell. 

Ann  Hand 

Born  January  24th,  1823 
Died  Sept.  3rd,  1829 

Marcus  Edwin 

Born  Feb.  25th,  1831 

Died  Feb.  3rd,  1833 

"Of  such  is  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.'" 

Seventy-five  years  have  passed  and  the  once  beautiful 
spot  is  now  desecrated.  The  oaks  are  cut,  the  toombstones 
are  broken,  and  the  grave  of  Georgia's  governor  is  tres- 
passed upon  in  a  shameful  manner.  However,  overshadow- 
ing his  tomb,  and  keeping  guard  is  a  holly  tree  in  all  its 
beauty,  filled  with  long  waving  wreathes  of  Spanish  moss, 
and  no  doubt  it  whispers  to  the  passing  breeze  that  hurries 
on  to  ocean,  the  story  of  a  lost  love! 

Aye,  what  is  it  all  if  this  life  be  all 

But  a  draught  to  its  dregs  of  a  cup  of  gall, 

A  bitter  round  of  rayless  years, 

A  saddened  dole  of  wormwood  tears, 

A  sorrowful  plaint  of  the  Spirit's  thrall 

The  graves,  the  shroud,  the  funeral  pall 

This  is  the  sum,  if  this  life  be  all. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  221 


PARTY  RELATIONS  IN  ENGLAND  AND  THEIR 
EFFECT  ON  THE  AMERICAN  REVOLUTION. 

(A  paper  read  before  the  Ralph  Humphreys  Chapter,  Daugh- 
ters of  the  American  Revolution,  of  Jackson,  Mississippi,  by  Dr. 
James  Elliott  Walmsley,  professor  of  history  in  Millsaps  College.) 

George  Eliot  says  somewhere  that  all  beginnings  are 
make-believes.  Especially  is  this  statement  found  true  in 
attempting  to  trace  the  origin  of  the  American  Revolution. 
Every  cause  assigned  is  at  once  seen  to  be  the  effect  of  some 
more  remote  cause,  until  one  might  go  back  step  by  step 
to  the  liberty-loving  ancestors  of  the  early  Saxons  in  their 
forest  home  of  Northern  Germany.  Without  undertaking 
any  work  so  elaborate  it  is  the  purpose  of  this  study  to 
show  the  effects  of  one  of  these  causes. 

All  free  governments  have  developed  parties,  but  as  the 
word  is  used  at  present  true  political  parties  in  England 
did  not  arise  till  after  the  wars  of  the  Puritans  and  Cava- 
liers in  the  seventeenth  century.  The  men  who  migrated 
to  America,  with  the  exception  of  the  aristocratic  element 
that  located  largely  in  the  South  between  1640  and  1660, 
were  of  the  party  who  believed  in  restricting  the  power  of 
the  king,  and  were  opposed  by  the  party  who  professed  im- 
plicit faith  in  the  divine  right  of  kings.  By  the  time  of  the 
accession  of  William  of  Orange  the  former  party  was  recog- 
nized by  the  name  of  Whigs,  while  the  loyal  devotees  of 
regal  infallibility  were  called  Tories. 

The  first  king  of  the  Hanover  line,  George  I,  was  seated 
on  his  throne  through  a  successful  piece  of  Whig  politics,  so 
admirably  described  by  Thackeray  in  Henry  Esmond,  and 
his  government  was  conducted  by  a  Whig  minister,  Robert 
Walpole,  assisted  by  a  Whig  cabinet.  The  power  remained 
in  the  hands  of  a  few  families,  and  this  condition,  which 
amounted  to  an  aristocratic  rule  of  "Old  Whigs, "  lasted 
down  to  the  accession  of  George  III,  in  1760.  The  new 
king,  who  was  destined  to  be  the  last  king  in  America,  was 
not  like  his  father  and  grandfather,  a  German-speaking 


222  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

prince  who  knew  nothing  of  England  and  her  people,  but 
one  who  gloried  in  the  name  Briton.  Brought  up  by  his 
mother  with  the  fixed  idea  he  should  never  forget  that  he 
was  king,  his  ambition  was  to  restore  the  autocratic  power 
of  William  I.  or  Henry  II.  To  attain  this  end  he  set  him- 
self to  overthrow  the  Whig  party  and  so  recall  to  favor 
the  Tories,  who  had  by  this  time  given  up  their  dreams  of 
' '  Bonnie  Prince  Charlie ' '  and  Stuart  restorations. 

This  misguided  monarch,  who  was  a  model  of  Christian 
character  in  private  life,  but  who  in  the  words  of  a  great 
English  historian,  wrought  more  lasting  evil  to  his  country 
than  any  other  man  in  its  history,  determined  first  to  over- 
throw William  Pitt,  the  elder,  the  greatest  statesman  that 
the  English  speaking  race  has  ever  produced — that  man 
who  sat  in  his  room  in  London  and  planned  campaigns  in 
the  snow  covered  mountains  of  Silesia  and  the  impassable 
swamps  of  Prussia,  on  the  banks  of  the  Hugli  in  India  and 
on  the  Plain  of  Abraham  in  Canada,  in  the  spicy  islands 
of  the  East  Indies  and  the  stormy  waters  of  the  Atlantic, 
who  brought  England  from  the  depths  of  lowest  dejection 
to  a  point  where  the  gifted  Horace  Walpole  could  say  in 
1759,  ''We  must  inquire  each  morning  what  new  victory 
we  should  celebrate."  This  great  man  was  overthrown 
by  the  king  in  1761,  and  there  came  into  power  the  extreme 
Tory  wing,  known  as  the  "king's  friends,"  whose  only  rule 
of  political  guidance  was  the  royal  wish.  These  men,  led  by 
the  Earl  of  Bute,  followed  the  king  on  one  of  the  wildest, 
maddest  courses  that  English  partisan  politics  has  known. 

At  this  point  we  must  pause  and  examine  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  British  Empire.  England,  Scotland,  and  Wales 
were  governed  by  their  own  Parliament,  but  so  defective 
was  the  method  of  representation  that  villages  which  had 
formerly  flourished  but  had  now  fallen  into  decay  or  even 
like  Old  Sarum,  were  buried  under  the  waves  of  the  North 
Sea,  still  returned  their  two  members  to  Parliament,  while 
important  cities  like  Manchester,  Leeds,  and  Birmingham, 
which  had  grown  up  in  the  last  hundred  years,  were  en- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  223 

tirely  unrepresented.  The  Whigs  in  England,  as  least  the 
New  Whigs,  the  progressive  element,  were  contending  for 
the  same  principle  of  representation  that  inspired  the 
Americans.  In  addition  to  the  home-land,  England  ruled, 
as  colonies,  Ireland,  the  Isle  of  Man,  the  Channel  Islands, 
sea  fortresses,  such  as  Gibraltar  and  Malta,  Asiatic  posses- 
sions, including  in  India  an  empire  twenty  times  as  popu- 
lous as  the  ruling  country,  Canada,  Jamaica,  the  Barba- 
does,  the  Thirteen  Colonies,  etc.  Our  own  thirteen  colonies, 
which  were  not  united  among  themselves  and  which  were 
not  different  in  the  eyes  of  an  Englishman  from  any  other 
of  the  colonies,  formed  a  small  part  geographically  of  the 
empire  and  had  for  their  peculiar  distinction  only  the 
larger  proportion  of  English  residents. 

Furthermore,  the  modern  idea  of  governing  colonies  for 
the  welfare  of  the  colonies  had  not  yet  been  invented.  A 
colony  was  considered  as  a  farm  or  any  other  wealth  pro- 
ducing piece  of  property.  Adam  Smith's  epoch-making 
work,  "The  Wealth  of  Nations,"  the  first  serious  attempt 
to  discuss  Political  Economy,  was  not  published  till  1776, 
and  in  his  chapter  on  colonies  he  for  the  first  time  proposed 
the  doctrine  of  removing  restrictions  and  >  allowing  to 
colonies  free  trade  and  free  government.  It  is  significant 
of  the  contentions  of  this  article  that  Adam  Smith's  book 
was  at  once  read  and  quoted  in  Parliament  by  the  leaders 
of  the  Whigs,  especial  attention  being  given  to  it  by  the 
young  William  Pitt,  who  was  described  by  an  enthusiastic 
Whig  as  "not  a  chip  of  the  old  block  but  the  old  block 
itself." 

With  this  preliminary  statement  we  can  take  up  the 
course  of  party  relations.  One  of  the  first  distinctively 
party  acts  of  George's  reign  was  the  Stamp  Act  passed 
against  the  active  opposition  of  the  Whigs ;  and  the  down- 
fall of  the  Grenville  ministry  and  the  accession  of  the 
Marquis  of  Rockingham,  the  Whig  prime  minister,  marked 
by  the  repeal  of  this  act  in  1766.  In  the  next  year,  how- 
ever, the  Rockingham  ministry  fell,  and  Townshend,  the 


224  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

moving  spirit  in  the  succeeding  administration,  carried 
through  the  series  of  acts  that  led  directly  to  the  Boston 
Tea  Party  and  its  momentous  results. 

Finally  when  George  III,  who  openly  proclaimed  him- 
self a  Tory,  succeeded  in  becoming  supreme  in  the  govern- 
ment, he  called  into  office,  in  1770,  Lord  George  North, 
who  for  twelve  years  was  the  king's  tool  in  carrying  out  a 
policy  which  he  disliked.  It  was  only  his  ' '  lazy  good  nature 
and  Tory  principles, ' '  which  led  him  to  defer  to  the  king 's 
judgment  and  advocate  the  doctrine,  in  a  far  different 
sense  from  the  present  meaning  of  the  words,  that  "the 
king  can  do  no  wrong. ' '  From  this  day  it  was  natural  that 
the  Whigs  in  opposition  should  oppose  the  government 
measures  and  should  identify  the  cause  of  free  government 
in  America  with  that  in  England  and  that  every  New 
Whig  should  become  an  enthusiastic  supporter  of  the 
American  contentions.  In  fact  George  and  the  Tory  party 
realized  that  if  the  American  theory  of  taxation  condi- 
tioned on  representation  prevailed  it  would  be  necessary 
to  yield  to  the  demand  of  the  New  Whigs  for  reform  in 
the  representation  in  England. 

This  fact  explains  some  intricate  points  in  the  politics 
of  the  time.  It  shows  for  instance  why  we  fought  a  war 
with  England  and  then  in  securing  a  treaty  of  peace  con- 
spired with  our  enemy,  England,  to  wrest  more  favorable 
terms  from  our  ally,  France.  We  fought  a  Tory  England, 
but  Lord  North's  ministry  fell  when  the  news  of  Yorktown 
came,  and  we  made  a  treaty  of  peace  with  a  whig  England, 
and  the  Whigs  were  our  friends.  The  Whigs  in  Parlia- 
ment spoke  of  the  American  army  as  ' '  our  army, ' '  Charles 
Fox  spoke  of  Washington's  defeat  as  the  "terrible  news 
from  Long  Island,"  and  Wraxall  says  that  the  famous 
buff  and  blue  colors  of  the  Whig  party  were  adopted  from 
the  Continental  uniform.  Even  the  "Sons  of  Liberty" 
took  their  name  from  a  phrase  struck  out  by  Colonel  Barre, 
the  comrade  of  Wolfe  at  Quebec,  in  the  heat  of  a  parlia- 
mentary debate. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  225 

Illustrations  of  this  important  point  might  be  multi- 
plied, but  it  may  be  better  to  take  up  more  minutely  the 
career  of  one  man  and  show  how  the  conflict  of  Whig  and 
Tory  politics  affected  the  actual  outcome  of  the  struggle. 
Lord  George  Howe  was  the  only  British  officer  who  was 
ever  really  loved  by  the  Americans,  and  there  is  to-day  in 
Westminister  Abbey  a  statue  erected  to  his  memory  by  the 
people  of  Massachusetts.  After  his  death  at  Ticonderoga 
in  1758  his  mother  issued  an  address  to  the  electors  of 
Nottingham  asking  that  they  elect  her  youngest  son  Wil- 
liam to  Parliament  in  his  place.  William  Howe,  known  in 
American  history  as  General  Howe,  considered  himself  as 
the  successor  of  his  brother  and  as  the  especial  friend  of 
the  Americans.  When  war  was  threatened  in  1774  he  told 
his  constituents  that  on  principle  the  Americans  were 
right  and  that  if  he  were  appointed  to  go  out  against  them 
he  would  as  a  loyal  Whig  refuse.  Of  course  this  was  a 
reckless  statement,  for  an  officer  in  the  army  can  not 
choose  whom  he  will  fight.  He  was  put  in  supreme  com- 
mand in  America  when  General  Gage  was  recalled,  but  was 
directed  by  his  government  to  carry  the  olive  branch  in 
one  hand.  That  he  obeyed  this  command,  which  was  to  his 
own  liking,  even  too  literally,  is  easily  established. 

There  is  one  almost  unwritten  chapter  in  American 
history  which  I  would  like  to  leave  in  oblivion,  but  candor 
demands  its  settlement.  Our  people  were  not  as  a  whole 
enthusiastic  over  the  war,  in  many  sections  a  majority  were 
opposed  to  it,  those  who  favored  it  were  too  often  half- 
hearted in  their  support.  Had  the  men  of  America  in  1776 
enlisted  and  served  in  the  same  proportion  in  which  the 
men  of  the  Southern  States  did  in  1861,  when  fighting  for 
their  "independence,"  Washington  would  have  had  at  all 
times  over  60,000  in  his  army.  As  a  matter  of  fact  there 
never  were  as  many  as  25,000  in  active  service  at  any  one 
time,  the  average  number  was  about  4,000,  and  at  certain 
critical  times  he  had  not  over  1,000.  General  Knox's  offi- 
cial figures  of  252,000  are  confessedly  inaccurate,  and  by 


226  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

including  each  separate  short  enlistment  make  up  the  total 
enlistment  for  the  six  years,  sometimes  counting  the  same 
man  as  often  as  five  times.  At  the  very  time  when  Wash- 
ington's men  were  starving  and  freezing  at  Valley  Forge 
the  country  people  were  hauling  provisions  past  the  camp 
and  selling  them  to  the  British  in  Philadelphia. 

Much  more  might  be  said,  but  enough  for  a  disagree- 
able subject.  No  careful  historian  to-day  will  deny  that 
considering  the  lack  of  support  given  to  Washington  and 
his  army,  the  Revolution  could  have  been  crushed  in  the 
first  year,  long  before  the  French  alliance  was  a  possibility, 
had  the  English  shown  one-half  the  ability  of  the  adminis- 
tration in  the  recent  South  African  War.  Among  the 
causes  assignable  for  this  state  of  incompetence  the  political 
situation  deserves  more  attention  than  it  has  hitherto  been 
given. 

No  one  has  ever  explained  Howe's  inexcusable  careless- 
ness in  letting  Washington  escape  after  Long  Island,  no 
one  can  explain  his  foolish  inactivity  during  the  succeed- 
ing winter,  except  by  the  fact  that  Howe  was  a  Whig,  his 
sympathies  were  with  the  Americans,  the  Whigs  had  said 
repeatedly  that  the  Americans  could  hold  out  against  a 
good  army  and  it  seemed  now  that  they  were  helping  ful- 
fill their  own  prophecy. 

It  is  rarely  stated  in  our  American  histories  that  Howe 
was  investigated  by  a  committee  of  Parliament  after  his 
evacuation  of  Philadelphia,  that  he  was  severely  condemned 
for  not  assisting  Burgoyne  and  for  not  capturing  Wash- 
ington's starving  handful  of  men  at  Valley  Forge,  that 
Joseph  Galloway,  the  noted  American  loyalist,  who  was  a 
member  of  the  first  Continental  Congress,  openly  accused 
him  of  being  in  league  with  a  large  section  of  Whigs  to  let 
the  Revolution  go  by  default  and  to  give  America  its 
independence,  and  that  immediately  after  his  return  to 
England  he  resumed  his  seat  in  Parliament  and  spoke  and 
worked  in  opposition  to  the  king  and  in  behalf  of  the 
Americans. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  227 

The  case  of  General  Howe  is  typical  and  can  be  dupli- 
cated in  the  other  departments  of  the  government.  The 
leading  Tory  ministers  claimed  that  the  rebellion  would 
have  failed  but  for  the  sympathy  in  the  House  of  Commons, 
and  this  charge  was  made  in  the  very  House  itself. 

It  would  be  a  gross  exaggeration  to  say  that  our  Revo- 
lution was  merely  the  result  of  a  party  quarrel  in  England, 
but  the  unfortunate  party  attitude  of  King  George  III. 
certainly  was  one  of  the  most  potent  causes  of  trouble,  and 
the  progress  of  the  war  reacted  most  strongly  on  the  party 
situation  in  England.  When  William  Pitt,  the  younger, 
at  the  age  of  twenty-five  took  into  his  hands  the  premier- 
ship of  England  in  December  1783,  he  did  it  as  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  English  people,  and  the  revolution  which 
began  in  this  country  was  completed  in  the  English  Parlia- 
ment. Up  to  1776  the  history  of  America  and  England 
flowed  in  the  same  channel,  Shakespeare,  Chaucer,  and 
Pitt  are  ours  as  much  as  England's,  and  it  should  always 
be  remembered  that  just  when  the  countries  were  in  the 
act  of  separating  the  system  of  George  III.  was  shaken  off 
and  shattered  by  the  free  people  of  the  two  great  Anglo- 
Saxon  powers,  and  the  Whig  statesmen  of  England  could 
join  with  their  party  friends  in  America  in  welcoming  a 
new  self-governing  people  to  the  council  of  nations. — 
American  Monthly  Magazine. 


228  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


EARLY  MEANS  OF  TRANSPORTATION  BY 
LAND  AND  WATER. 

The  facilities  for  conveniently  carrying  persons  or 
property  from  one  place  to  another  affects  in  a  measure  the 
physical  welfare  of  every  human  being,  and  all  progressive 
nations  desire  to  secure  the  advantages  to  be  derived  from 
the  best  systems  of  transportation.  This  country  of  ours 
has  tried  many  experiments  and  been  rapidly  benefited  in 
the  results  obtained.  It  hardly  seems  to  us  possible,  in 
this  day  of  improved  and  rapid  travel,  that  the  entire 
system  of  transportation  is  still  in  the  transition  state,  and 
in  some  parts  of  the  country  the  very  expedients  which  we 
have  tried,  improved  upon  and  cast  away,  are  at  present  in 
use.  But  our  topic  deals  with  other  days  than  these,  and 
we  must  hasten  back  to  the  beginning  of  things  here  in 
America. 

According  to  Indian  tradition,  it  is  believed  that  within 
a  brief  period  prior  to  the  discovery  of  America  by  Colum- 
bus, the  Indians  had  travelled  over  a  large  portion  of  the 
country  between  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans,  and  were 
familiar  with  the  topographical  features  of  the  continent. 
Their  frequent  wars  and  their  long  continuance  in  the 
hunter  state,  made  them  necessarily  a  migratory  race  and 
their  pathways  were  the  first  trails  for  the  white  settlers 
when  they  came.  When  we  travel  over  crooked  roads  and 
even  crooked  streets  in  our  towns,  how  many  of  us  stop  to 
think  that  we  are  travelling  the  same  road  as  blazed  out  for 
us  by  an  Indian  or  trodden  down  for  us  by  an  early  set- 
tler's straying  cow? 

As  the  Indian,  as  a  guide  through  the  almost  impene- 
trable forests  was  of  great  aid  to  the  early  settlers,  so  also 
was  the  canoe  of  the  Indian  a  great  service.  Of  course  the 
white  man  crossed  the  ocean  in  larger  boats,  but  when  it 
came  to  travelling  from  point  to  point,  after  reaching 
America,  the  lighter  craft  of  the  Indians  was  the  only 
possible  means  of  water  travel,  for  the  numerous  falls  or 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  229 

rapids,  and  the  frequent  portages  between  distinct  water 
systems,  made  the  use  of  a  heavy  boat  impossible.  These 
canoes  were  of  birch  bark,  buffalo  skin,  stretched  over 
wooden  frames,  or  even  large  trees  felled,  the  trunk  cut 
into  sections  and  split,  then  hollowed  out  by  burning  first 
and  the  ashes  scooped  out  with  the  hands  or  pieces  of  shell, 
until  the  sides  and  bottom  were  reduced  to  the  utmost  thin- 
ness consistent  with  buoyancy  and  security.  The  method 
of  propelling  these  canoes  was  usually  by  paddle,  but  some 
had  sails.  The  size  varied  from  twelve  feet  to  forty  feet 
in  length,  and  they  were  capable  of  carrying  from  two  to 
forty  men.  Of  course  the  larger  canoes  were  used  princi- 
pally for  state  occasions,  military  purposes,  or  when  large 
stores  of  supplies  were  to  be  transported. 

One  old  historian  tells  of  the  way  the  sails  were  used. 
The  Indian  stood  in  the  bow  of  the  canoe  and  with  his 
hands  held  up  two  corners  of  his  blanket,  and  the  other  two 
corners  were  either  fastened  to  his  ankles  or  simply  placed 
under  each  foot,  while  in  the  stern  of  the  canoe,  the  squaw 
sat  and  steered.  The  scheme  was  an  ingenious  one  and 
must  have  been  a  grateful  change  to  the  poor  squaw,  who 
otherwise  would  have  had  to  propel  the  canoe  by  means  of 
the  paddle. 

Of  the  Indian  canoe  Longfellow  says: 

The  forest's  life  was  in  it, 
All  its  mystery  and  its  magic, 
All  the  lightness  of  the  birch  tree, 
All  the  toughness  of  the  cedar; 
All  the  larches  supple  sinews. 
And  it  floated  on  the  river 
Like  a  yellow  leaf  in  Autumn, 
Like  a  yellow  water  lily 

On  account  of  the  dense  forests  and  the  difficulty 
experienced  in  penetrating  them,  the  early  settlements 
were  upon  the  banks  of  streams  and  consequently  the 
water  channels  and  seaports,  for  communication  between 
the  various  settlements,  as  well  as  with  the  mother  country, 


230  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

were  a  necessity  and  the  very  first  legislation  with  regard 
to  transportation  related  to  boats,  canoes  and  landings.  It 
was  a  long  time  before  any  internal  development  of  the 
land  took  place,  because  these  waterways  formed  the  main 
reliance  for  all  movements  of  persons  or  property.  Each 
of  the  thirteen  original  colonies  had  one  or  more  seaports 
and  the  main  current  of  trade,  during  the  colonial  period, 
and  in  fact  up  to  much  later  times,  was  between  these 
ports  and  the  interior  districts  on  the  one  hand,  and  the 
outer  world  and  the  ocean  on  the  other.  Commerce  between 
the  colonies  was  limited  and  all  movements  from  one  colony 
to  another  were  by  various  kinds  of  sea  going  vessels.  All 
the  boats  subsequently  built  by  the  European  settlers 
showed  the  influence  of  the  Indian  canoe.  The  raft  was 
another  method  of  the  Indian  for  transporting  property, 
and  from  this  grew  the  various  kinds  of  floatboats.  The 
raft  itself  is  still  in  use  but  more  as  a  means  of  transport- 
ing the  lumber  of  which  it  is  composed  than  as  a  means  for 
carrying  other  freight. 

For  land  travel,  when  the  Indians  had  burdens  to  carry 
they  did  it  by  means  of  the  burden  strap,  an  arrangement 
of  leather  bands  which  fitted  around  the  forehead  and  was 
lashed  to  a  litter  borne  upon  the  back.  It  was  usually 
about  fifteen  feet  in  length  and  braided  into  a  belt  in  the 
center,  three  or  four  inches  wide.  This  carrying  of  bur- 
dens upon  the  back  is  the  one  method  of  transportation 
which  combines  the  greatest  amount  of  human  effort  with 
the  least  practical  effect.  But  it  was  at  the  time  the  only 
method  available  and  formed  one  of  the  most  serious 
privations  and  discomforts  of  savage  life. 

It  is  recorded  in  the  case  of  a  white  man,  who  helped 
the  Indians  in  one  of  their  wars,  early  in  1600,  that  he  was 
wounded  and  could  not  walk.  Thereupon  he  was  placed 
in  a  basket  of  wicker  work,  doubled  up,  and  fastened  with 
cords  until  he  could  scarcely  move,  and  so  carried  upon  the 
backs  of  Indians  for  several  days. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  231 

In  winter  we  are  told  they  had  some  sort  of  primitive 
sledges,  and  they  used  dogs  in  some  sections.  Then,  of 
course,  they  had  the  snow  shoe,  which,  to  them,  was  a  rapid 
way  of  travelling,  but  when  the  poor  white  explorers  or 
captives  travelled  with  the  Indians  on  winter  expeditions, 
they  suffered  sharply  until  they  caught  the  hang  of  it. 
Chilblains  were  not  the  worst  of  the  suffering,  for  the  tie 
over  the  instep  and  the  loops  over  the  toes  caused  friction, 
and  bleeding,  frozen  feet  were  the  result. 

When  the  white  man  came,  he,  in  time,  brought  horses 
and  these  were  much  appreciated  by  the  Indians,  who  seem- 
ed to  know  intuitively  how  to  manage  and  use  them.  In 
place  of  carrying  burdens  upon  his  own  back,  the  red  man 
fastened  one  end  of  his  tent  poles  to  the  horse  and  fastened 
upon  them  the  skins  which  composed  his  tent,  and  allowed 
the  poles  to  trail  upon  the  ground.  This  support  furnished 
a  method  of  transporting  baggage,  household  effects  and 
even  women  and  children  vastly  superior  to  the  old  way. 

The  old  trails  of  the  red  man,  over  which  for  many 
years  they  had  traveled  with  their  peculiar  but  rapid  walk, 
now  furnished  bridle  paths  for  the  white  man  and  his 
horse,  and  many  of  those  bridle  paths  are  today  in  use.  Of 
course,  the  first  sturdy  settlers  walked  these  trails  as  did 
the  Indians,  and  we  have  the  history  of  one  journey  of 
Governor  Winthrop,  when  he  was  carried,  at  least  over 
streams,  "pick-a-pack"  upon  the  back  of  an  Indian.  This 
is  a  very  human,  if  undignified,  picture  of  the  worthy 
governor. 

An  early  explorer  in  Virginia  said  that  had  she  ''but 
horses  and  kine  and  were  inhabited  with  English,  no  realm 
in  Christendom  were  comparable  to  it. ' '  As  these  blessings 
were  all  added  to  Virginia  in  course  of  time,  we  must 
believe  her  the  fairest  of  colonies.  As  the  Indians  were  too 
poor  to  buy  the  carefully  guarded  horses  of  the  early  set- 
tlers, and  could  not  steal  them,  they  were  compelled  to  wait 
until  races  of  wild  horses  were  developed  from  the  horses 
brought  to  Florida,  Mexico  and  California  by  the  Span- 


232  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

iards.  The  better  grade  of  horse  was  used  by  the  warrior 
and  for  travel,  but  the  poorer  horses  for  the  drudgery  and 
were  quite  naturally  called  "squaw  ponies."  In  the  early 
days  before  the  carriage  was  introduced,  wounded  or  sick 
persons  were  carried  upon  stretchers  between  two  horses. 

The  early  means  of  transportation  on  land,  in  the 
colonies,  was  by  horseback,  for  either  persons  or  property, 
and  this  was  the  universal  method  of  travel  until  nearly  the 
beginning  of  the  19th  century.  It  was  a  common  custom  for 
the  post  rider  to  also  act  as  a  squire  of  dames,  and  some- 
times he  would  have  in  charge  four  or  six  women  travelling 
on  horseback  from  one  town  to  another.  It  was  to  the 
north  that  the  carriage  came  first,  and  in  the  early  days 
only  the  very  wealthy  families  had  them.  And  with  the 
coming  of  the  carriage,  the  colonists  realized  that  they 
needed  something  better  than  an  Indian  trail  or  bridle 
path,  and  the  agitation  for  good  roads  had  its  birth.  One 
can  form  some  idea  of  what  the  co-called  roads  must  have 
been  in  1704,  when  we  read  that  the  mail  from  Philadel- 
phia to  New  York  ' '  is  now  a  week  behind  and  not  yet  com  'd 
in."  The  mail  after  1673  was  carried  by  horseback  be- 
tween New  York  and  Boston,  but  as  late  as  1730,  the  post- 
master was  advertising  for  applications  from  persons  who 
desired  to  perform  the  foot  post  to  Albany  that  winter. 
The  route  was  largely  up  the  Hudson  river  on  skates.  In 
1788  it  took  four  days  for  mail  to  go  through  from  New 
York  to  Boston  in  good  weather — in  winter  much  longer. 

The  commerce  between  the  settlements  on  the  coast  and 
those  in  southwestern  Pennsylvania  and  western  Virginia 
was  carried  on  by  pack  horse.  The  people  in  these  districts 
sent  their  peltry  and  furs  by  pack  horse  to  the  coast  and 
there  exchanged  them  for  such  articles  as  they  needed  in 
their  homes  and  for  work  upon  their  farms.  Several  fami- 
lies would  form  an  association,  a  master-driver  would  be 
chosen  and  the  caravan  move  on  its  slow  way  to  the  settle- 
ment east  of  the  mountains.  Afterwards  this  pack  horse 
system  was  continued  by  common  carrier  organizations. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  233 

The  earliest  legislation  in  reference  to  highways  was  in 
the  Massachusetts  Bay  Colony  in  1639,  providing  for  super- 
visors, and  the  relaying  of  the  roads  so  as  to  be  more  con- 
venient  for  travel,  with  authority  to  ' '  lay  out  the  highways 
where  they  may  be  most  convenient,  notwithstanding  any 
man 's  property,  or  any  corne  ground,  so  as  it  occasion  not 
the  pulling  down  of  any  man's  house,  or  laying  open  any 
garden  or  orchard."  The  law  in  force  in  Pennsylvania, 
prior  to  the  grant  to  Penn  was  part  of  the  system  estab- 
lished for  the  New  York  Colony  in  1664.  In  1700  a  revis- 
ion of  existing  road  laws  was  made,  giving  control  of 
county  roads  to  county  officials,  but  the  king 's  highway  and 
public  roads  to  be  controlled  by  governor  and  council. 

The  fact  appears  that  while  the  early  roads  in  the 
American  colonies  were  bad,  England  had  few,  if  any,  good 
roads,  and  the  improvement,  when  begun,  was  so  rapid  that 
driving  for  pleasure  was  introduced  here  long  before  it 
was  known  in  England.  In  fact,  the  idea  was  carried  back 
to  England  by  officers  who  fought  in  the  Revolution. 

When  stage  coaches  were  started  in  the  colonies  in  1718, 
from  Boston  to  Rhode  Island,  there  was  no  wagon  road 
over  this  route,  it  not  being  built  until  1721.  It  was  a 
common  thing  for  the  passengers  of  the  early  stage  coaches 
to  have  to  get  out,  and  help  lift  or  push  the  stage  coach  out 
of  the  mud,  and  the  objection  raised  to  this  was  the  reason 
for  the  introduction  of  the  corduroy  road.  If  one  has  had 
the  doubtful  pleasure  of  riding  over  a  short  portion  of  such 
road,  one  knows  that  it  was  a  question  whether  long 
stretches  of  it  and  being  shaken  around  in  the  coach  like 
peas  in  a  pod,  was  much  improvement  over  being  dumped 
out  into  the  mud,  while  the  coach  was  lifted  out  of  the 
mire  with  which  the  old  roads  were  padded.  With  the 
development  of  stage  routes,  came  bridges,  ferries,  turn- 
pikes and  national  roads.  As  the  passengers  and  light 
baggage  were  carried  by  stage,  the  freight  traffic  was  car- 
ried on  by  the  old  time  teamsters,  with  their  huge  wagons, 
with  six  or  eight  horses  attached  to  each,  and  moving  along 


234  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

the  turnpikes,  traveling  together  for  company  and  protec- 
tion. These  turnpikes  presented  a  bustling  appearance, 
with  the  dashing  stage  coaches,  parties  on  horseback,  the 
long  trains  of  teamsters'  huge  wagons,  and  the  many 
taverns  that  lined  these  thoroughfares.  The  passenger  on 
the  stage  coach  had  time  to  study  nature  and  his  sur- 
roundings as  he  passed  along,  and  to  be  fortunate  enough 
to  secure  the  box  seat  with  the  stage  driver  and  hear,  as 
one  rode  along,  the  gossip  of  the  route,  made  a  joy  one  does 
not  experience  in  our  days  of  rapid  travel. 

Following  the  institution  of  national  roads  and  staging, 
came  the  introduction  of  canals  and  artificial  waterways, 
as  a  means  of  transportation  for  freight  in  the  carrying 
on  of  commerce.  A  short  canal,  for  the  transporting  of 
stone,  was  built  in  Orange  County,  New  York,  as  early  as 
1750.  The  first  public  canal  company  was  the  James  River 
Company,  incorporated  in  1785.  From  that  time  on  there 
have  been  vast  improvements  in  methods  and  much  of  our 
freight  is  moved  by  means  of  the  large  canals  all  over  our 
country. 

The  next  development  in  transportation  facilities  was 
the  railroad,  the  first  of  which  was  the  "Experiment"  rail- 
road built  to  carry  stone  to  Bunker  Hill  Monument.  Oliver 
Evans,  in  1772,  began  to  experiment  upon  the  construction 
of  a  steam  carriage  to  run  upon  the  ground,  but  it  re- 
mained for  John  Stevens  to  combine  the  steam  carriage  and 
the  railway.  The  first  rail  cars,  or  coaches,  were  run  by 
horse  power.  It  is  interesting  to  read  Mr.  Evans'  predic- 
tion, which  is  as  follows : 

"I  do  verily  believe  that  the  time  will  come  when  car- 
riages propelled  by  steam  will  be  in  general  use,  as  well 
for  the  transportation  of  passengers  as  goods,  travelling  at 
the  rate  of  fifteen  miles  an  hour,  or  three  hundred  miles 
per  day."  In  1813  he  predicted  that  the  time  would  come 
when  a  traveller  could  leave  Washington  in  the  morning, 
breakfast  at  Baltimore,  dine  at  Philadelphia  and  sup  at 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  235 

New  York,  all  in  the  same  day,  travelling  "  almost  as  fast 
as  birds  fly,  fifteen  to  twenty-miles  an  hour." 

In  1811,  Robert  Fulton,  journeying  by  stage  to  Pitts- 
burgh, said,  ' '  The  day  will  come,  gentlemen,  I  may  not  live 
to  see  it,  though  some  of  you  who  are  younger  will  prob- 
ably— when  carriages  will  be  drawn  over  these  mountains 
by  steam  engines  at  a  rate  more  rapid  than  that  of  a 
stage  on  the  smoothest  turnpike." 

A  howl  of  protest  went  up  from  the  old  stage  drivers 
when  the  railroad  was  projected,  but  as  every  public 
necessity  had  its  will,  the  railroads  had  come  to  stay. 
There  were  many  accidents  on  these  primitive  roads,  and 
these  were  made  the  most  of  by  the  opposition.  One  old 
stager  said,  ' '  You  got  upset  in  a  stage  coach,  and  there  you 
were.  You  got  upset  in  a  rail  car — and  where  are  you  ? ' ' 

From  trail  in  the  days  of  the  Indians  to  T-rail  of  recent 
years  seems  a  slow,  tedious  advance,  but  as  some  one  has 
said: 

"When  we  reflect  upon  the  obstinate  opposition  that 
has  been  made  by  a  great  majority  to  every  step  towards 
improvement ;  from  bad  roads  to  turnpikes,  from  turnpikes 
to  canals,  from  canal  to  railways  for  horse  carriages, 
it  is  too  much  to  expect  the  monstrous  leap  from  bad  roads 
to  railways  for  steam  carriages  at  once.  One  step  in  a  gene- 
ration is  all  we  can  hope  for." — CLARA  D.  PATTERSON, 
East  on,  Pen  nsyliwnia. 


236  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

COLONEL  BENJAMIN  HAWKINS. 
BY  MRS.  J.  L.  WALKER,  Waycross. 

Colonel  Hawkins,  patriot,  soldier,  United  States  senator 
and  Indian  agent,  was  born  August  15,  1754,  in  the  county 
of  Butts,  now  Warren  County,  North  Carolina.  He  was 
the  son  of  Colonel  Philemon  and  Delia  Hawkins.  He  at- 
tended Princeton  College  until  his  senior  year  when  the 
institution  was  closed  on  account  of  the  Revolutionary 
War. 

His  knowledge  of  the  French  language  led  Washington 
to  press  him  into  service  as  a  member  of  his  staff  to  act  as 
intrepreter  with  the  French  allies.  He  was  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  Society  of  Cincinnati  in  1783. 

He  was  a  gallant  Revolutionary  soldier,  having  partici- 
pated in  several  important  engagements,  among  the  number 
the  Battle  of  Monmouth.  After  North  Carolina  ratified  the 
federal  constitution  he  was  elected  United  States  Senator 
from  that  state,  taking  his  seat  in  1790.  At  the  close  of  his 
term  in  the  senate  he  was  appointed  agent  of  the  three 
great  Indian  tribes  east  of  the  Mississippi  and  entered 
upon  his  duties  in  the  part  of  Georgia  now  known  as  Craw- 
ford County,  but  at  that  time  called  "The  Agency 
Reserve. ' ' 

This  place  became  an  important  trading  post  and  was 
selected  by  Colonel  Hawkins  as  a  convenient  locality  for  the 
transaction  of  duties  that  devolved  upon  him.  He  infused 
progression,  activity  and  thrift  into  the  little  village.  Mills, 
workshops,  and  comfortable  homes  appeared  on  every  side. 

"Colonel  Hawkins  brought  his  own  slaves  from  his  old 
home  in  North  Carolina,  and  under  the  right  conceded  to 
his  office,  he  opened  and  cultivated  a  large  plantation  at 
the  agency,  making  immense  crops  of  corn  and  other  pro- 
visions. ' ' 

"While  he  lived  his  cattle  brand  was  rigidly  respected 
by  the  red  men;  although  soon  as  his  death,  if  reports  be 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  237 

true,  the  Creeks,  oblivious  of  former  obligations,  stole  num- 
bers of  his  cows  and  hogs. ' ' 

To  him  does  the  state  of  Georgia  owe  a  debt  of  special 
gratitude.  He  not  only  risked  his  life  for  the  state  of  his 
adoption,  but  preserved  the  history  of  the  Creek  country, 
some  of  which  is  most  valuable  and  interesting. 

The  French  general,  Moreau,  who  in  exile,  was  his 
guest  for  some  time,  was  so  much  impressed  with  his  char- 
acter and  labors,  that  he  pronounced  him  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  men  he  met  in  America. 

Colonel  Hawkins  possessed  great  adaptability  and 
through  his  beneficence  he  acquired  the  respect  of  the 
Indians.  It  is  said  he  gained  their  love  and  bound  them  to 
him  by  "ties  as  loyal  and  touching  as  those  of  old  feudal 
allegiance  and  devotion." 

He  was  closely  associated  with  Generals  Floyd,  Black- 
shear  and  John  Mclntosh,  and  Governors  Troup,  Mitchell 
and  Early. 

The  Indians  of  Chehaw  were  closely  allied  to  Colonel 
Hawkins.  They  frequently  furnished  him  with  valuable 
information  in  regard  to  the  treachery  of  the  British  and 
the  unfriendly  Indians. 

It  has  been  conceded  to  some  of  our  patriots  that  they 
were  great  in  war.  Benjamin  Hawkins  was  not  only  great 
in  war,  but,  like  Washington,  was  great  in  peace.  It  was  he 
who  most  strongly  advocated  terminating  the  War  of  1812. 
He  knew  well  how  to  approach  the  ' '  children  of  the  forest. ' ' 
The  simple  and  diplomatic  way  in  which  he  addressed  the 
Indians  is  displayed  in  his  quaint  letter  to  the  Ammic-cul-le, 
who  lived  at  the  Indian  town  of  Chehaw : 

"The  time  is  come  when  we  are  to  compel  our  enemies 
to  be  at  peace,  that  we  may  be  able  to  sit  down  and  take 
care  of  our  families  and  property  without  being  disturbed 
by  their  threatening  and  plundering  of  us. 

"General  Blackshear  is  with  you  to  protect  and  secure 
the  friendly  Indians  on  your  river,  and  to  aid  in  punish- 
ing the  mischief-makers.  Go  you  to  him ;  see  him ;  take  him 


238  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

by  the  hand,  and  two  of  you  must  keep  him.  You  must 
point  out  sixty  of  your  young  warriors,  under  two  chiefs, 
to  be  with,  and  act  under  the  orders  of  the  general  till  you 
see  me.  He  will  supply  them  with  provisions  and  some 
ammunition. 

"You  must  be  very  particular  about  spies.  You  know 
all  the  friendly  Indians,  and  all  who  are  hostile.  If  any 
spies  come  about  you  of  the  hostiles,  point  them  out  to  the 
general.  And  your  warriors,  acting  with  the  general  must 
be  as  quick  and  particular  as  his  white  soldiers  to  appre- 
hend or  put  to  death  any  enemy  you  meet  with.  Your 
warriors  will  receive  the  same  pay  as  the  soldiers  in  the 
service  of  the  United  States. 

' '  Tell  your  women  and  children  not  to  be  afraid, — that 
friends  have  come  for  their  protection,  and  that  I  am  at 
the  head  of  the  Creek  warriors. 

"I  am  your  friend  and  the  friend  of  your  nation." 

Colonel  Hawkins  was  closely  identified  in  the  negotia- 
tion of  the  Treaty  of  Peace  and  Friendship  with  the  In- 
dians. His  name,  together  with  George  Clymer  and 
Andrew  Pickens,  was  signed  as  commissioners  on  the  part 
of  the  United  States  to  the  Treaty  held  at  Coleraine,  in 
Camden  County,  Georgia,  March  18,  1797. 

A  treaty  of  limits  between  the  United  States  and  the 
Creek  nation  of  Indians,  was  held  near  Milledgeville,  at 
Fort  "Wilkinson,  on  the  part  of  the  United  States.  The 
signers  were  Benjamin  Hawkins  and  Andrew  Pickens. 
This  treaty  was  signed  by  forty  chiefs  and  warriors.  Treaty 
with  the  Creeks  at  the  agency,  near  Flint  River,  on  Nov- 
ember 3,  1794,  signed  by  Hopoie  Micco  and  other  Indians, 
also  bore  Hawkins'  signature. 

"In  1802  Colonel  Hawkins  recommended  the  establish- 
ing of  a  fort  and  trading  post  on  the  Old  Ocmulgee  Fields. ' ' 
The  right  to  establish  such  a  post  was  obtained  by  the  Fort 
Wilkinson  treaty.  Colonel  Hawkins  selected  a  site  on  an 
eminence  near  the  river,  where  the  city  of  Macon  now 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  239 

stands.  A  tract  of  one  hundred  acres  of  land  was  set  apart 
for  the  use  of  the  post. 

Fort  Hawkins  was  built  in  1806  and  was  garrisoned  by 
troops  from  Fort  Wilkinson  early  in  the  following  year. 
The  fort  was  named  in  honor  of  Benjamin  Hawkins,  one 
of  the  few  honors  bestowed  upon  him  by  the  state  he  had 
so  ably  served.  "This  fort  was  considered  one  of  the  most 
formidable  on  the  frontier.  Two  block  houses,  each  twenty- 
eight  feet  square  with  two  stories  and  a  basement  were 
built  with  heavy  mortised  logs.  This  place  was  provided 
with  port  holes  for  both  cannon  and  musketry,  and  stood 
at  the  southeast  and  northwest  corner  of  a  strong  stock- 
ade. During  the  war  of  1812  the  fort  was  a  strong  point 
for  the  mobilization  of  troops." 

Colonel  Hawkins  died  at  the  i  agency  in  Crawford 
County,  June  6,  1816,  and  was  "buried  on  a  wooded  bluff 
overlooking  the  Flint  River."  The  little  graveyard  that 
served  as  a  last  resting  place  for  those  who  lived  around 
the  agency  has  long  since  been  abandoned.  The  unmarked 
grave  of  a  patriot  is  there,  sleeping  unhonored  amid  the 
tangled  vines  and  weeds. 


240  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


GOVERNOR  JARED  IRWIN. 

Jared  Irwin  was  born  in  Mecklenburg,  N.  C.,  in  1750, 
about  two  years  after  his  parents  arrived  from  Ireland. 
They  emigrated  from  Mecklenburg  County,  N.  C.,  and 
came  to  Burke  County,  Georgia,  when  Jared  was  seven 
years  old.  Years  afterward  Jared  moved  to  Washington 
County. 

He  was  a  faithful  soldier  in  the  Indian  wars,  serving 
as  a  Brigadier-General  in  the  Georgia  Militia.  In  the 
Revolutionary  War  he  served  as  Captain  and  afterwards  as 
Colonel,  fighting  in  the  siege  of  Savannah  and  Augusta 
and  in  the  battles  of  Camden,  S.  C.,  Briar  Creek,  Georgia, 
Black  Swamp,  and  others. 

Just  after  the  first  siege  of  Augusta,  in  1780,  Colonel 
Williamson  was  placed  in  command  of  Colonel  Clarke's 
forces  and  on  April  16th,  1781,  he  led  them  to  Augusta 
and  fortified  his  camp  within  twelve  hundred  yards  of  the 
British  works.  Here  Captain  Dun,  and  Captain  Irwin 
with  the  Burke  County  men,  joined  him,  where  they 
guarded  every  approach  to  Augusta  for  nearly  four  weeks, 
never  for  a  moment  relaxing  their  vigilance,  but  waiting 
impatiently  for  the  promised  assistance  'from  General 
Greene. 

At  last,  the  militia,  destitute  of  almost  every  necessity 
of  life,  wearied  of  their  hard  service,  and  giving  up  all 
hope  of  aid,  determined  to  return  to  their  homes.  The 
encouragement  of  Colonel  Jackson  roused  their  drooping 
spirits,  inspired  them  with  hope  and  courage,  and  saved 
them  from  tarnishing  the  laurels  they  had  already  won. 
The  militia  afterwards  nobly  did  their  part  in  all  the 
fights  around  Augusta. 

Jared  with  his  three  brothers  John,  William,  <and 
Alexander,  built  a  fort  in  Washington  County  known  as 
Fort  Irwin,  which  was  used  as  a  defence  against  the 
British  and  with  his  private  money  he  equipped  his  com- 
pany of  soldiers  for  the  war. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  241 

Jane,  the  Governor's  youngest  child,  received  a  claim 
through  our  great  members,  Alexander  H.  Stephens  and 
Robt.  Toombs,  in  the  United  States  Congress,  to  the  amount 
of  ten  thousand  dollars  for  money  expended  by  her  father 
in  the  defence  of  his  section  of  the  country  in  time  of  the 
Revolutionary  War. 

Jared  Irwin  represented  Washington  County  in  the 
Legislature  and  was  President  of  the  State  Senate  at 
different  times  from  1790  to  1818.  He  was  in  the  Con- 
vention for  revising  our  Constitution  in  1789,  and  was 
president  of  the  body  which  revised  it  in  1798.  At  the 
close  of  the  war  of  Independence  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Legislature  that  convened  under  our  present  form  of 
government. 

In  1796,  the  Legislature  assembled  in  Louisville,  then 
the  Capitol  of  eGorgia,  and  on  the  second  day  of  the  ses- 
sion, January  17th,  he  was  elected  Governor.  The  Legis- 
lature at  once  took  up  the  Yazoo  Act  over  which  the  State 
was  greatly  excited. 

A  committee  of  investigation  pronounced  it  not  binding 
on  the  State  on  account  of  the  fraud  used  to  obtain  it. 
James  Jackson  introduced  a  bill  known  as  the  ''Rescind- 
ing Act."  This  was  at  once  passed  by  both  houses  and 
signed  by  Gov.  Irwin,  Feby.  13th,  1796. 

It  was  resolved  to  burn  the  papers  of  the  Yazoo  Act 
and  thus  purge  the  records  of  everything  relating  to  it. 
So  on  Feby.  15th,  1796,  wood  was  piled  in  front  of  the 
State  House,  and,  in  the  presence  of  Gov.  Irwin  and  both 
branches  of  the  Legislature,  fire  was  kindled  by  the  use  of 
a  lens  and  the  records  and  documents  were  burned  "with  a 
consuming  fire  from  heaven. ' ' 

After  the  death  of  General  James  Jackson,  United 
States  Senator,  Governor  Milledge  was  elected  to  fill  his 
place  by  the  Legislature  at  an  extra  session  held  in  June, 
1806,  and  in  September  following  tendered  his  resignation 
as  Governor.  In  this  way,  Jared  Irwin,  President  of  the 
Senate,  again  became  Governor,  and  when  the  Legislature 


242  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

met  in  November  he  was  elected  to  that  office  for  a  full 
term,  thus  filling  the  Governor's  chair  from  the  23rd  of 
September,  1806,  to  the  7th  of  November,  1809. 

His  administration  as  Governor  was  distinguished  for 
justice  and  impartiality.  The  spotless  purity  of  his 
character,  his  affable  disposition,  his  widespread  benevol- 
ence and  hospitality,  made  him  the  object  of  general  affec- 
tion. To  the  poor  and  distressed  he  was  benefactor  and 
friend. 

In  every  position  of  public  life,  as  a  soldier,  a  statesman 
and  a  patriot,  the  public  good  was  the  object  and  the 
end  of  his  ambition,  and  his  death  was  lamented  as  a 
national  calamity. 

Governor  Irwin  married  Isabella  Erwin,  his  cousin,  and 
they  had  four  children,  Thomas,  John,  Elizabeth  and  Jane. 
Thomas  was  among  the  nine  in  the  first  class  that  graduated 
from  the  University  of  Georgia  on  Thursday,  May  31st, 
1804,  and  had  a  speaker's  place  at  Commencement.  Jane 
the  youngest  child,  lived  and  died  an  old  maid ;  she  said  she 
would  not  marry  for  fear  that  the  Irwin  name  might  run 
out.  She  was  spirited,  a  good  talker,  and  affable  in  her 
manner,  a  patriotic,  whole-souled,  noble  woman. 

Governor  Irwin  died  on  March  1st.,  1818,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-eight  and  was  buried  at  his  home  at  Union  Hill, 
in  Washington  County. 

In  1856  there  was  an  appropriation  by  the  Georgia 
Legislature  to  erect  a  monument  to  his  memory;  and  in 
1860,  a  Committee  consisting  of  Colonel  R.  L.  Warthen, 
Captain  S.  A.  H.  Jones  and  Colonel  J.  W.  Rudisill,  was 
appointed  to  select  a  site  for  same.  It  was  decided  to 
erect  the  monument  in  Sandersville,  Ga.,  the  county  site 
of  Washington  County ;  and  here  it  still  stands  on  Court 
House  square — a  shaft  of  pure  white  marble — a  gift  from 
the  State  to  the  memory  of  her  noble  son  who  gave  his  life, 
love  and  ability  to  his  beloved  Georgia,  "Empire  State  of 
the  South." — Governor  Jared  Irwin  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  243 


EDUCATION  OF  MEN  AND  WOMEN  OF  THE 
AMERICAN  REVOLUTION. 

BY  MRS.  DEB.  RANDOLPH  KEIM. 

Regent  Berks  County,  Reading  Pa.,  Chapter  and  Honorary 
Vice-President  General,  T>.  A.  R. 

Again  you  are  assembled  to  do  honor  to  the  memory  of 
George  Washington,  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Continen- 
tal armies  during  the  war  for  Independence,  this  being  the 
one  hundred  and  severity-ninth  anniversary  of  his  birth. 

The  first  steps  to  the  establishment  of  a  school  of 
systematic  education  of  young  men  was  "William  and  Mary 
College,  of  Williamsburgh,  the  capital  of  Virginia,  in  1617, 
twenty-six  years  before  the  foundation  of  Harvard  in 
Massachusetts.  But  the  character  of  the  former  was  not 
granted  until  1693,  or  fifty  years  after.  The  first  common 
school  established  by  legislation  in  America  was  in  Massa- 
chusetts, in  1645,  but  the  first  town  school  was  opened  at 
Hartford,  Conn.,  before  1642,  and  I  feel  proud  to  say  I 
graduated  from  this  same  school  over  two  hundred  years 
later,  then  known  as  the  Hartford  Latin  Grammar  School 
and  later  Hartford  Boy's  and  Girls'  High  School. 

The  only  established  schools  of  higher  learning  io 
America  after  William  and  Mary  in  Virginia  and  Harvard 
in  Massachusetts  for  the  education  of  young  men  later 
prominent  in  the  Revolution  were :  St.  John 's,  Annapolis, 
Md.,  1696;  Yale,  New  Haven,  Conn.,  1701;  University  of 
Pennsylvania,  Philadelphia,  1740;  Princeton,  N.  J.,  1746: 
Washington  and  Lee,  Lexington,  Va.,  1749;  Columbia, 
New  York,  1754. 

Only  the  sons  of  men  of  means  could  avail  themselves 
of  these  advantages.  Therefore  the  great  mass  of  those 
who  became  more  or  less  prominent  picked  up  whatever 
they  knew  as  best  they  could.  In  Virginia,  Patrick  Henry, 
Washington  and  others  had  the  limited  opportunity  and 
means  of  the  old  "Field  or  Plantation  School"  which  was 


244  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

the  only  road  to  the  rudest  forms  of  knowledge.  These  were 
generally  taught  by  men  of  fair  education,  but  adventurous 
life,  who  were  paid  by  the  planters  within  a  radius  of  eight 
or  ten  miles. 

A  notorious  pedagogue,  by  the  suggestive  name  Hobby, 
celebrated  in  Virginia  annals  for  the  brisk  coercive  switch- 
ing of  the  backs  of  his  ' '  boys ' '  as  the  most  effective  road  to 
knowledge,  is  made  famous  in  history  as  the  rudimentary 
educator  of  the  great  man  whose  beginning  of  life 's  journey 
dates  from  this  day.  Washington's  parents  having  remov- 
ed from  the  place  of  his  birth  when  a  child  resided  within  a 
journey  of  thirteen  miles  of  the  despotic  jurisdiction  of 
Hobby,  and  thither  the  boy  walked  or  rode  daily  except 
Sundays  in  all  kinds  of  weather,  even  being  obliged  to  row 
across  the  Rappahannock  River  to  Fredericksburg,  where 
this  vigorous  applier  of  the  ferrule  held  forth. 

At  eleven  years,  the  death  of  Washington's  father  put 
an  end  to  even  this  limited  supply  of  "schooling."  But 
the  young  man  fortunately  had  a  mother  who  was  one  of 
the  few  educated  women  of  that  period.  We  learn  from  a 
primitive  record  that  Mary  Ball,  the  name  of  Washington 's 
mother,  was  educated  by  a  young  man  graduated  from 
Oxford,  England,  and  sent  over  to  be  assistant  to  the 
rector  of  the  Episcopal  parish  in  which  she  lived.  At  the 
age  of  fifteen  she  could  read,  write  and  spell.  In  a  letter 
preserved  she  wrote  to  a  young  lady  friend:  "He  (her 
tutor)  teaches  Sister  Susie  and  me  and  Madame  Carter's 
boy  and  two  girls.  I  am  now  learning  pretty  fast. ' ' 

It  was  Governor  Berkeley  who,  in  a  letter  to  his  friends 
in  England,  boastingly  "thanked  God  that  there  were  no 
schools  and  printing  in  Virginia." 

Washington  was  always  methodical,  and  what  he  under- 
took was  done  well.  This  trait  he  inherited  from  his 
mother,  as  she  was  a  woman  worthy  of  imitation.  From 
her  stern  disciplinary  character  and  pious  convictions  her 
son  learned  self-control  and  all  the  characteristics  of  ad- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  245 

dress  and  balance,  which  carried  him  through  the  most 
intricate  and  discouraging  experiences  of  his  career. 

The  tastes  of  Washington  in  childhood  were  instinct- 
ively military;  all  his  amusements  pointed  that  way.  At 
twenty-one  his  first  mission  to  the  French  at  le  Boeuf ,  fixed 
his  career  as  a  fearless  man  of  action.  The  rescue  of  Brad- 
dock 's  Regulars  from  destruction  by  the  savages  was  his 
baptism  of  fire;  the  rest,  a  manifestation  of  human  great- 
ness put  the  stamp  of  military  prowess  upon  him.  Virginia 
furnished  more  of  the  leaders  of  the  first  rank  in  the  contest 
with  the  Crown  than  any  other  one  colony,  and  yet  some  of 
the  men  who  contributed  most  to  the  incisive  work  of  the 
conflict  had  few  opportunities  of  education. 

For  instance,  Patrick  Henry,  who  electrified  the  issue 
in  his  famous  epigram  which  struck  the  fulminate  of  the 
combat  for  independence :  ' '  Caesar  had  his  Brutus,  Charles 
the  First  his  Cromwell  and  George  the  Third"  (Treason, 
treason  being  shouted),  rejoined,  "if  this  be  treason,  make 
the  most  of  it."  This  same  authority,  being  criticised  by 
aristocratic  loyalists  for  his  lack  of  education,  replied: 
"Naiteral  pairts  are  more  acount  than  all  the  book  lairn- 
ing  on  the  airth. " 

Thomas  Jefferson,  on  the  other  hand,  was  a  man  of 
higher  education.  The  private  schoolhouse  ten  feet  square 
on  the  Tuckahoe  plantation,  thirteen  miles  west  of  Rich- 
mond, in  which  Thomas  Jefferson  and  his  kinsman,  Thomas 
Marr  Randolph,  were  educated,  in  part  by  a  private  tutor, 
was  in  a  good  state  of  preservation  when  I  had  the  pleasure 
of  visiting  Tuckahoe  at  the  time  of  the  international  review 
at  Hampton  Roads. 

What  we  today  call  free  school  education  began  in  a 
simple  form  under  the  Quakers  of  Philadelphia  in  the 
earliest  years  of  the  Provincial  government  of  Penn,  the 
first  proprietary.  Thomas  Holme  in  bad  rhyme  and  not 
much  better  grammar  tells  about  these  schools  in  1696.  In 
what  the  Germans  would  call  the  hinterland  the  school  was 
at  a  low  ebb.  There  being  no  towns  there  were  no  facilities 


246  EEVOLUTIONARY  READER 

to  get  enough  scholars  together  to  make  the  pay  of  a  teacher 
worth  the  while.  The  Germans,  the  dominant  element, 
when  educated  at  all,  were  under  the  tuition  of  teachers  of 
parochial  schools  of  the  evangelical  denominations  and  sects 
of  their  own,  frequently  pastors  or  missionaries  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Fatherland.  In  Pennsylvania  among  the 
emigrants  who  came  over  in  colonies  there  was  a  preacher 
and  a  schoolmaster.  This  was  particularly  so  among  the 
Dutch,  Swedes  and  Germans.  The  English  Quakers  began 
schools  in  Philadelphia  very  soon  after  the  foundation  of 
that  town.  In  the  interior  schools  were  rare  as  the  settle- 
ments were  scattered. 

Reading  was  not  founded  until  1748,  therefore  educa- 
tion had  not  made  headway  at  the  time  when  the  men 
prominent  in  Berks  affairs  during  the  Revolution  were  at 
the  educational  age.  Yet  those  who  figured  during  that 
period  in  prominent  places  held  their  own  with  any  of  their 
city  contemporaries.  Among  the  people  generally,  accord- 
ing to  the  oath  of  allegiance  list,  handwriting  was  evidently 
not  widespread,  judging  from  the  number  of  ''his  (cross) 
mark,"  substituted  for  signatures  in  1777-1778. 

In  1714  Christopher  Dock,  a  German,  opened  a  school  at 
Skippach,  below  what  is  now  Pottstown,  about  thirty  miles 
from  this  large  assemblage  of  educated  young  ladies.  Chris- 
topher Dock  was  a  man  of  real  learning,  unexcelled  by  any 
outside  of  Pennsylvania  in  his  time.  His  "Schule  Ord- 
nung"  written  in  1750  and  printed  by  Christopher  Sauer, 
of  Germantown,  1770,  was  the  first  treatise  on  education 
produced  in  type  in  the  American  colonies.  The  leaders  in 
the  German  emigration  prior  to  the  American  Revolution 
were  often  men  of  the  highest  scholastic  training. 

In  New  England  began  the  earliest  systematic  prelimi- 
naries and  expansion  in  the  line  of  schooling.  It  has  the 
honor,  as  I  have  shown,  of  founding  the  second  institution 
of  higher  learning  which  survives  today.  James  Otis, 
Samuel  and  John  Adams,  foremost  agitators  on  the  legal 
technicalities  of  opposition  to  England,  were  the  best  types 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  247 

of  the  output  of  New  England's  educational  opportunities 
of  the  times. 

It  is  one  of  the  greatest  tributes  to  our  forefathers  that 
with  these  limited  and  more  frequently  rude  means  of  get- 
ting an  education  there  should  have  been  so  many  examples 
of  brain  and  culture  to  meet  the  educational  requirements 
of  the  conflict  with  the  British  Crown,  the  preparation  of 
documents  which  stood  the  most  critical  scrutiny,  and  as 
well  the  preparation  and  negotiating  of  correspondence, 
conventions  and  treaties  to  compare  favorably  with  the 
most  advanced  university  educated  statesmen  of  the  Old 
World. 

What  I  have  said  applies  to  men,  but  what  about  the 
young  women  of  the  same  period?  Except  in  the  few 
largest  towns  where  some  enterprising  woman  was  cour- 
ageous enough  of  her  own  volition  to  establish  a  school 
for  young  ladies,  the  education  of  women  was  not  con- 
sidered of  importance.  The  Moravians  were  the  first  and 
most  notable  exceptions.  The  seminary  at  Bethlehem, 
almost  in  sight  of  where  we  are  now  gathered,  was  famous 
in  Revolutionary  days. 

In  New  York  and  Philadelphia  there  was  an  occasional 
fashionable  "school"  for  young  ladies. 

Abigail  Smith,  who  became  wife  of  John  Adams,  one  of 
the  earliest  agitators  and  leaders  of  the  contest,  one  of  the 
committee  that  drafted  the  Declaration  of  Independence, 
first  Vice-President  and  second  President  of  the  United 
States,  was  a  woman  of  education.  Being  the  daughter  of 
a  Congregational  preacher  and  having  a  taste  for  books,  her 
father  devoted  much  care  to  her  instruction. 

As  John  Adams,  on  account  of  his  radical  patriotism 
was  the  man  the  British  authorities  most  feared,  and  were 
looking  for,  the  letters  of  Mrs.  Adams  to  her  husband  and 
his  replies  are  valuable  contributions  to  American  history. 

They  were  perfect  in  writing,  spelling,  grammar  and 
composition.  I  may  add,  though,  of  a  date  long  after,  his- 
tory is  indebted  to  her  letters  to  her  daughter  for  the  only 


248  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

eye  witness  account  we  have  of  the  trials  and  tribulations 
of  the  journey  of  the  President's  family  from  Philadelphia 
to  Washington,  in  the  fall  of  1800,  then  the  new  seat  of 
government,  getting  lost  in  the  woods  and  taking  possession 
of  the  unfinished  President's  palace,  as  it  was  called,  with- 
out firewood  during  bleak  November  days  and  nights  with 
no  looking  glasses,  lamps,  nor  anything  else  to  make  a 
President's  wife  comfortable. 

As  a  rule,  young  women  were  not  educated  in  books,  but 
taught  to  sew,  knit,  spin,  weave,  cook,  wash,  iron  and  per- 
form all  other  household  requirements.  Her  value  in  the 
scale  of  life  was  in  proportion  as  she  was  skilled  in  the 
duties  of  a  housewife.  This  was  the  real  type  of  woman- 
hood in  those  days,  and  should  always  be,  with  a  cultivated 
mind  added. 

When  we  read  of  their  heroic  maintenance  of  the  home, 
care  and  training  of  children,  management  of  the  farm, 
sale  of  its  products  and  often  facing  hardships  in  keeping 
the  wolf  from  the  door,  while  husbands,  sons  and  brothers 
were  fighting  for  liberty  and  independence,  we  care  not 
whether  they  could  read,  write,  spell,  cast  up  accounts  or 
not,  but  think  of  their  woman's  contribution  to  the  success 
of  the  contest. 

It  is  positive  that  the  fathers  of  the  Revolution  would 
not  have  been  successful  but  for  the  women,  perhaps  un- 
educated in  books  but  competent  and  self-sacrificing  in 
maintaining  the  home,  while  the  men  were  fighting  for 
liberty  and  free  exercise  of  all  its  enjoyments.  If  this  great 
nation  is  a  testimonial  of  what  women  without  the  aid  of 
books  contributed  in  laying  the  foundation,  what  must  now 
be  expected  of  women  having  every  advantage  of  educa- 
tion from  kindergarten  and  primary  schools  to  the  woman 's 
college  ? 

I  might  mention  sixteen  colleges  now  exclusively  de- 
voted to  the  education  of  young  women  in  New  York,  Mas- 
sachusetts, Pennsylvania,  Maryland,  North  Carolina,  South 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  249 

Carolina,  Georgia,  Ohio,  and  Illinois  with  a  roll  of  eight 
thousand  young  women  students. 

The  first  seniority  is  Mount  Holyoke,  Mass.,  founded 
in  1837,  having  755  scholars;  the  largest  is  Smith  College, 
Northampton,  Mass.,  1,620  young  women;  next  "Wellesley, 
Mass.,  1,375,  and  Bryn  Mawr,  Pennsylvania,  1,125.  To 
show  the  difference  between  now  and  the  days  of  our  revo- 
lutionary fathers,  the  school  houses  were  built  of  logs,  one 
story  high,  with  bark  roofs  and  puncheon  or  dirt  floors, 
which  on  account  of  incessant  tramping  usually  became 
covered  several  inches  deep  with  dust.  The  teacher  sat  in 
the  center  of  the  room. 

In  the  log  walls  around  were  driven  wooden  pegs  upon 
which  were  laid  boards  that  formed  the  desks.  The  seats 
were  rough  stools  or  logs.  All  sat  with  backs  to  the  teacher. 
The  windows  to  admit  light  were  fitted  with  white  paper 
greased  with  lard  instead  of  glass.  The  boy  scholars  wore 
leather  or  dried  skin  aprons  and  buckskin  tunics  and  leg- 
gins,  when  they  could  not  get  woven  materials.  And  the 
girls,  coarsely  woven  flax  or  wool  bodices,  skirts,  kerchiefs, 
and  aprons  and  footwear  of  wood,  coarse  leather,  not  a 
few  going  barefoot. 

The  writing  equipment  in  Revolutionary  days  consisted 
of  ink  which  was  of  home  manufacture  from  an  ink  powder, 
quills  and  a  pen  knife,  cutting  pens  from  goose  quills  being 
an  art.  The  rest  of  the  materials  were  paper,  pumice,  a 
rule,  wax,  and  black  sand,  shaken  from  a  pepper  box  ar- 
rangement, instead  of  blotting  paper. 

The  earliest  method  of  teaching  before  school  text-books 
were  known  was  by  what  was  termed  the  hornbook,  a  tablet 
of  wood  about  5  by  2  inches  upon  which  was  fastened  a 
paper  sheet  containing  the  alphabet  in  capitals  and  small 
letters  acros  sthe  top  and  simple  syllables  like,  ab,  ad,  etc. ; 
below  and  underneath  the  whole  the  Lord's  Prayer.  The 
paper  containing  this  course  of  study  was  covered  with  a 
sheet  of  transparent  horn  fastened  around  the  edges.  At  the 
lower  edge  was  a  small  handle  with  a  hole  through  it  and  a 


250  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

string  to  go  around  the  neck.  By  this  means  the  advant- 
ages of  a  colonial  education  stayed  by  the  scholars  if  they 
wished  to  avail  of  them  or  not. 

These  hornbooks  were  made  of  oak,  bound  with  metal 
for  common  folks,  but  for  the  rich  of  iron  and  metal,  often 
silver.  Some  were  wrought  in  silk  needle  work.  Their 
popularity  is  shown  by  their  advertisement  for  sale  in  the 
Pennsylvania  Gazette,  December,  1760,  and  New  York 
Gazette,  May,  the  same  year.  Battledore  book  was  another 
name.  Another  style  was  the  printed  cardboard  battle- 
dore, about  fifteen  inches  long  and  folded  over  like  a  pocket 
book. 

The  primer  succeeded  the  hornbooks,  the  New  England 
Primer  being  one  of  the  earliest.  It  is  recorded  that  three 
millions  of  these  were  sold,  so  great  was  the  desire  for 
education  in  times  preceding  the  Revolution.  These  little 
books  were  five  by  three  inches  and  contained  80  pages. 
They  gave  short  tables  of  easy  spelling  up  to  six  syllables ; 
also  some  alphabetical  religion  in  verse,  as 

K — for  King  Charles  the  good, 
No  man  of  blood. 

In  the  Revolutionary  days  this  was  transposed  to 

K — jfor  Kings  and  queens, 
Both  have  beens. 

Z  appears  to  have  been  a  poser  in  this  alphabetical  array 
of  rhythmic  religion,  rendered 

Zaccheus  he 
Did  climb  a  tree 
His  Lord  to  see. 

The  hours  of  study  were  eight  a  day. 

There  were  also  text-book  writers  in  those  early  times. 

Among  the  titles  one  reads :  "  A  delysious  syrup  newly 
claryfied  for  young  scholars  yt  thurste  for  ye  swete  lycore 
of  Latin  speche."  Another:  "A  young  Lady's  Accident 
or  a  short  and  easy  introduction  to  English  Grammar  de- 
signed principally  for  the  use  of  young  learners,  more 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  251 

especially  for  those  of  the  fair  sex  though  proper  for 
either. ' '  Fifty-seven  pages.  It  had  a  great  sale. 

It  was  the  style  of  the  time  to  set  books  of  instruction 
in  doggerel  verse,  even  spelling,  grammar  and  arithmetic. 
The  latter  was  taught  by  means  of  "sum  books,"  simply 
"sums"  copied  by  the  learner  from  an  original  furnished 
by  the  teacher. 

Alphabet  lessons  were  similar  to  the  alphabet  blocks 
children  play  with  to-day,  generally  beginning  with  verses 
from  the  Bible.  An  interesting  fact  is  that  we  find  the 
child's  prayer,  "Now  I  lay  me  down  to  sleep,"  in  the  New 
England  Primer  catechism  as  far  back  as  1737.  A  more 
beautiful  tribute  could  not  be  paid  to  this  invocation  of 
childhood  than  the  thought  of  the  generations  of  American 
children  who  were  thus  taught  in  their  everyday  lessons 
their  dependence  upon  the  Supreme  Being. 

Some  of  the  most  interesting  contributions  we  have  to 
the  literature  of  the  Revolutionary  period  are  the  letters 
of  the  educated  women  of  the  time.  They  are  the  more 
pleasing  because  they  relate  to  the  affairs  of  home  and 
social  life. 

You,  of  this  age  of  education  of  women  are  expected  to 
exert  a  large  share  in  their  extension  and  enjoyment. — 
American  Monthly  Magazine. 


252  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


NANCY  HART. 

Many  people  believe  that  Nancy  Hart  was  a  myth.  But 
not  so.  In  the  "Life  and  Times  of  William  H.  Crawford," 
by  J.  E.  D.  Shipp,  of  Americus,  the  story  is  reproduced,  as 
the  Hart  family  lived  not  far  from  the  home  of  the  Craw- 
fords.  Col.  Shipp  says: 

On  the  north  side  of  Broad  River  at  a  point  about 
twelve  miles  from  the  present  city  of  Elberton,  Ga.,  and 
fourteen  from  historic  Petersburg,  in  what  is  now  Elbert 
County,  was  situated  the  log  house  in  which  Benjamin  Hart 
and  his  wife,  Nancy  Morgan  Hart,  lived  at  the  commence- 
ment of  the  Revolution.  The  spot  is  easily  located  to  this 
day  as  being  near  Dye's  and  "Will's  ferries,  and  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  river  from  which  Governor  Matthews 
settled  in  1784,  near  a  small  and  romantic  stream  known  as 
"War  Woman's  Creek. "  This  was  the  name  given  to  it  by 
the  Indians  in  honor  of  Nancy  Hart,  whom  they  admired 
and  feared.  Her  home  was  near  the  entrance  of  the  stream 
into  the  river. 

The  State  records  show  that  Benjamin  Hart  drew  400 
acres  of  land  on  Broad  River,  and  afterwards  another  body 
of  land  in  Burke  county.  He  was  a  brother  to  the  celebra- 
ted Col.  Thomas  Hart  of  Kentucky,  who  was  the  father  of 
the  wife  of  Henry  Clay.  He  was  a  well-to-do  farmer,  and 
was  compelled  to  take  his  stock  and  negroes  to  the  swamp 
to  protect  them  and  his  own  life  from  the  unrestrained 
Tories.  As  captain  of  a  small  company  of  'Partisans,'  he 
would  sally  forth  from  his  hiding  place  only  whenever 
there  was  a  chance  of  striking  the  enemy  an  effective  blow. 

The  Tories  generally  spared  the  women,  but  killed  the 
men,  though  unarmed.  Nancy  Hart,  alone  with  six  boys — 
Morgan,  John,  Thomas,  Benjamin,  Lemuel  and  Mark — 
and  her  two  girls,  Sally  and  Keziah,  presents  a  unique 
case  of  patriotic  fervor,  courage  and  independence  of 
character.  Rough,  six  feet  tall,  spare,  bigboned  and  ex- 
ceedingly strong,  she  was  highspirited,  energetic  and 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  253 

shrewd.     The  "Whigs  loved  her — the  Liberty  boys  called 
her  "Aunt  Nancy."    The  Tories  hated  her. 

When  General  Elijah  Clark  moved  the  women  and 
children  away  from  Broad  River  settlement  to  a  place  of 
safety  in  Kentucky  most  of  them  were  anxious  to  go,  but 
Nancy  refused,  and  remained  alone  with  her  children  after 
her  Whig  neighbors  had  departed.  Her  house  was  a  meet- 
ing place  for  her  husband's  company.  She  aided  as  a  spy 
and  kept  him  informed  of  the  movements  of  the  enemy. 
She  always  went  to  the  mill  alone  and  was  an  expert 
equestrienne.  One  day  while  on  her  rounds  she  was  met  by 
a  band  of  Tories  with  the  British  colors  striped  on  their 
hats.  They  knew  her  and  demanded  her  "pass."  She 
shook  her  fist  at  them  and  replied :  ' '  This  is  my  pass ;  touch 
me  if  you  dare. ' ' 

Tories  lived  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river  from  her, 
and  she  had  many  trials  with  them.  Some  are  noted.  One 
night  "Aunt  Nancy"  was  boiling  a  pot  of  lye  soap  in  the 
big  fireplace  of  her  stack  chimney.  Suddenly  she  noticed  a 
pair  of  eyes  and  a  bearded  face  at  a  crack  between  the  logs. 
Pretending  not  to  see  the  prowler,  she  went  on  stirring  the 
soap  and  chatting  with  the  children.  Biding  her  time,  she 
deftly  threw  a  ladleful  of  the  boiling  soap  into  the  face  of 
the  intruder,  whom,  blinded  and  roaring,  Nancy  bound  fast 
and  the  next  morning  marched  him  across  the  river,  wading 
the  ford,  and  delivered  him  to  Colonel  Clark.  She  had  many 
encounters,  capturing  Tories  and  taking  them  to  the  com- 
mander. 

But  of  all  her  acts  of  heroism  this  one  eclipses  all  others. 
From  the  detachment  of  British  soldiers  sent  out  from 
Augusta,  and  which  murdered  Colonel  Dooly,  there  were 
five  who  diverged  to  the  east  and  crossed  Broad  River  to 
examine  the  neighborhood  and  paid  a  visit  to  Nancy  Hart. 
They  unceremoniously  entered  her  cabin.  Being  hungry, 
they  ordered  her  to  cook  food  for  them.  She  replied  that 
the  Tories  and  the  villains  had  put  it  out  of  her  power  to 
feed  them,  as  she  had  nothing.  ' '  That  old  gobler  out  there 


254  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

is  all  I  have  left. ' '  The  leader  of  the  party  shot  down  the 
turkey,  brought  it  in  and  ordered  Nancy  to  prepare  it 
without  delay.  She  and  her  children  went  to  work  at  the 
task.  Finally  she  heard  her  unwelcome  guests  boasting  of 
killing  Col.  Dooly.  Then  she  appeared  in  good  humor  and 
exchanged  rude  jests  with  them.  Pleased  with  her  free- 
dom they  invited  her  to  partake  of  their  liquor,  which  she 
accepted  with  jocose  thanks.  While  the  turkey  was  cooking 
Nancy  sent  her  eldest  daughter  to  the  spring  for  water, 
with  directions  to  blow  the  conch  shell,  which  sound  her 
father  would  interpret.  The  Tories  became  merry  over  the 
liquor,  pouring  it  from  the  jug  with  laughter,  as  they 
hurried  up  Nancy,  anticipating  a  good  feast.  They  were 
at  ease.  They  stacked  their  arms  within  easy  reach,  and 
Nancy  would  ocasionally  pass  between  the  men  and  their 
muskets.  The  Tories  again  called  for  water  and  Nancy 
again  sent  the  daughter  to  the  spring  for  water — and  to 
blow  the  signal  for  Captain  Hart.  Nancy  was  thinking 
fast.  Through  a  crack  between  the  logs  she  slipped  out- 
side two  of  the  five  guns.  When  the  third  was  being  put 
out  she  was  discovered,  and  the  men  sprank  to  their  feet. 
In  an  instant  Nancy  brought  the  musket  to  her  shoulder, 
declaring  she  would  kill  the  first  man  that  moved.  Ap- 
palled by  her  audacity  and  fury,  the  men  for  a  moment 
stood  still ;  then  one  of  them  made  a  quick  movement  to 
advance  on  her.  She  shot  him  dead.  Instantly  seizing  the 
other  musket  at  her  side  she  leveled  it,  keeping  the  others 
at  bay.  By  this  time  the  daughter  returned  from  the 
spring  and  took  the  other  gun  out  of  the  house,  saying: 
' '  Father  and  the  company  will  soon  be  here. ' '  This  alarm- 
ed the  Tories  and  they  proposed  a  general  rush.  So  Nancy 
fired  and  brought  down  another  man  dead  at  her  feet.  The 
daughter  handed  her  another  gun  and  Nancy,  moving  to 
the  doorway,  demanded  surrender  of  the  three  living. 
"Yes,  we  will  surrender,  and  let's  shake  hands  on  the 
strength  of  it."  But  Nancy  did  not  shake  hands.  When 
Captain  Hart  and  company  arrived  Nancy  would  not  let 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  255 

them  shoot,  saying:  "These  prisoners  have  surrendered  to 
me ;  they  have  murdered  Colonel  Dooly.  I  heard  them  say 
so."  And  George  Dooly,  brother  of  Colonel  Dooly,  and 
McCorkle  followed  and  saw  that  the  captured  murderers 
were  hanged. 

John  Hart,  second  son  of  Nancy,  became  an  influential 
citizen  of  Athens.  Nancy  lived  with  him  after  the  death 
of  Capt.  Hart.  In  1787,  when  the  two  Virginia  preachers, 
Thomas  Humphries  and  John  Majors,  were  holding  a  great 
campmeeting  in  Wilkes  County,  Nancy  became  a  staunch 
adherent  of  the  new  faith  and  joined  the  church — Wesley 's. 
She  finally  moved  to  Kentucky,  where  her  relatives,  the 
Morgans,  lived.  Hart  County  was  named  for  her,  and  the 
town  of  Hartford,  which  in  1810  was  the  county  seat  of 
Pulaski. 


BATTLE  OF  KING'S  MOUNTAIN. 

BY  MARION  JACKSON  HALL. 

They  heard  the  guns  a-roaring, 

They  sounded  far  and  wide; 
They  saw  the  rebels  coming, 

Up  every  mountain  side. 

The  mountaineers,  no  longer  tame, 
From  every  hill  and  thicket  came, 
They  rushed  up  every  mountain  side 
To  plunge  into  the  swelling  tide. 

Ferguson  knew,  both  good  and  well, 
He  would  have  to  fight,  on  hill  or  dell, 
But  the  number  of  rebels,  he  could  not  tell. 
They  were  advancing,  and  walking  fast, 
When  now  they  blew  a  long,  shrill  blast. 
A  smoke  now  covered  the  battlefield 
With  deaf  ning  sound,  of  warlike  peal. 


256  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

The  British  flag  was  waving  high, 
When  through  the  smoke  there  came  a  cry — 
A  cry  from  amidst  the  cloud  did  ring 
From  men  that  fought  for  England's  king. 

The  English  flag,  they  took  it  down, 
Their  leader  was  dead,  and  on  the  ground, 
And  panic  stricken,  they  were  found. 

The  rebels  raged  and  charged  again 
And  captured  more  than  a  thousand  men; 
They  raised  their  flag  up  at  top  mast, 
They  saw  and  knew  they  were  gaining  fast. 

The  thunder  roared,  the  lightning  flashed, 
And  through  the  cloud  some  horsemen  dashed, 
The  field  was  high,  but  there  was  mud, 
For  it  was  wet  and  red  with  blood. 

It  was  a  short,  but  bloody  fight, 
It  filled  the  Tories  all  with  fright— 
They  whipped  the  Tories,  that  was  right. 

The  battlefield  with  blood  was  red, 

And  covered  with  wounded  and  with  dead. 

They  smote  and  fell,  who  raised  a  hand, 

To  wipe  the  rebels  from  the  land. 

The  Americans  won  that  glorious  fight 

That  put  them  all  to  thinking  right, 

They  believed  they  should  soon  make  their  laws 

And  God  was  with  their  righteous  cause. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  257 


WILLIAM  CLEGHORN. 

In  the  spring  of  1728,  a  handful  of  sturdy  Scotchmen 
started  from  Chelmart,  Scotland,  for  America,  "The  Land 
of  the  Free  and  the  Home  of  the  Brave."  Among  these 
were  the  parents  of  the  boy  William  Cleghorn,  whose  true 
story  is  herein  narrated. 

He  was  a  frail  lad  and  partly  for  the  love  of  the  sea 
and  partly  for  his  health,  he  enlisted  in  the  Navy.  We  find 
him  enrolled  at  Brunswick,  N.  C.,  September  8th,  1748,  as  a 
member  of  Capt.  Samuel  Corbin's  Company.  He  proved  a 
daring  sailor,  yet  he  was  not  so  interested  in  the  Navy  but 
that  he  had  time  to  fall  desperately  in  love  with  sweet 
Thankful  Dexter,  of  Falmouth. 

Now,  Thankful 's  father  was  a  man  of  wealth,  great 
wealth,  for  those  days,  and  a  son-in-law,  with  nothing  to 
recommend  him  but  good  looks  and  a  fine  record  as  a 
daring  sailor,  did  not  appeal  to  him,  but  demure,  sweet 
Thankful  had  a  will  of  her  own.  She  saw  that  young  Wil- 
liam was  worthy  of  any  woman's  love,  so  never  for  an 
instant  did  she  even  think  of  giving  him  up. 

As  time  went  on  our  hero  began  to  be  a  power  in  the 
colonies.  He  was  interested  in  everything  pertaining  to 
their  welfare.  He  soon  began  to  prosper  financially,  and 
on  February  12,  1782,  we  find  recorded  that  he  gave  secur- 
ity for  twenty  thousand  ($20,000.00)  dollars,  and  took 
command  of  the  ten-gun  ship  "Virginia."  Rickerton,  the 
historian,  tells  us  in  his  history  that  our  hero  was  "one  of 
the  earliest  and  most  intelligent  ship  masters"  but  "all 
the  world  loves  a  lover,"  and  I  started  to  tell  you  chiefly 
about  his  love  affair. 

Thankful  was  always  dreaming  of  William's  bright, 
cheery  face,  and  we  may  be  sure  she  lost  no  apportunity  to 
say  to  her  worldly,  bustling  father,  ' '  Didn  't  I  tell  you  so  ?  " 
every  time  William  brought  new  honors  upon  himself. 

As  time  went  on  this  energetic  young  man  conceived  the 
idea  of  building  a  sloop,  which  he  did  and  named  it  the 


258  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

"Betsy."  We  wonder  why  he  did  not  call  it  "The  Thank- 
ful" but  perhaps  Thankful  had  something  to  say  about 
that. 

"William  loaded  the  "Betsy"  with  an  immense  cargo  of 
oil  and  sailed  around  Cape  Horn.  This  was  the  very  first 
voyage  ever  made  around  the  Cape,  and  can  you  not 
imagine  how  proud  young  William  Cleghorn  was?  And 
can  you  not  almost  hear  Thankful  telling  her  father  about 
the  wonderful  journey  around  Cape  Horn? 

The  father  was  now  convinced  that  William  was  not 
only  valiant  in  war  and  a  persistent  lover,  but  that  he  was 
an  excellent  business  man  as  well,  so  he  withdrew  his 
objections  and  Thankful  Dexter  became  the  happy  wife  of 
William  Cleghorn. 

We  can  almost  see  the  radiant  Thankful  in  her  home- 
spun gown  and  pertly  poke  bonnet,  and  the  erect  happy 
William  with  the  air  of  a  conquerer,  coming  side  by  side 
from  the  little  church,  through  the  narrow  paths  of 
Martha's  Vineyard,  to  the  home  all  ready  for  the  happy 
couple,  for  William  was  now  a  well-to-do  young  man. 

We  must  not  take  them  all  through  life's  journey,  for 
this  is  to  be  a  child's  story,  but  alas  for  human  joys,  while 
on  a  visit  to  Boston  in  1793,  William  Cleghorn  was  stricken 
with  appoplexy  and  very  suddenly  passed  away. 

When  you  go  to  Boston,  go  out  to  the  old  Granary 
Cemetery,  so  well  known  by  lovers  of  history,  and  inclosed 
in  an  iron  railing  you  see  a  white  stone  standing  alone. 
Draw  near  and  read  the  inscription  and  you  will  see  that 
there  lies  your  hero,  William,  for  on  the  stone  you  read : 

Captain  William  Cleghorn 

of 

New  Bedford. 
Who  died  in  a  fit  of  appoplexy  on  a  visit  to  this  town, 

February  24,  1793,  in  the  60th  year  of  his  age. 
"Here  lies  entombed  beneath  the  tufted  clod, 
A  man  beloved,  the  noblest  of  God. 
With  friendly  throbs  the  heart  shall  beat  no  more, 
Closed  the  gay  scene,  the  pomp  of  life  is  o'er." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  259 

In  the  record  of  his  will  we  find  the  following,  which 
will  show  you  how  our  ancestors  made  their  wills : 

Two  mahogony  tables,  I  square  table,  16  leather  bottom 
chairs,  1  mahogony  desk,  7  looking  glasses,  1  set  of  china 
(42  pieces),  1  coffee  set  (30  pieces),  34  linen  sheets,  25 
pair  pillow  cases,  1  pew  in  First  Congregational  Meeting 
House,  1  pew  in  Second  Congregational  House,  etc.,  etc., 
besides  a  long  list  of  notes  and  other  properties. 

This  is  very  different  from  the  wills  of  today,  isn't  it? 
I  presume  we  have  many  boys  as  brave  and  true  as  Wil- 
liam, and  many  girls  as  dear  and  sweet  as  Thankful,  and 
perhaps  one  hundred  years  from  now  other  boys  and  girls 
will  be  reading  about  some  of  you.  So  let  us  live  in  such 
a  way  that  we  may  have  our  story  written  and  enjoyed  as 
is  this  true  story  of  Thankful  Dexter  and  William  Cleg- 
horn — EVELYN  CLEGHORN  DIMOCK  HENRY,  Xavier  Chap- 
ter, D.  A.  R.,  Rome,  Ga. 


THE  BLUE  LAWS  OF  OLD  VIRGINIA. 

Usually  in  discussion  of  blue  laws,  those  very  Draconian 
regulations  which  have  so  aroused  the  ire  or  the  respect  of 
moderns,  depending  upon  which  way  they  look  at  it,  the 
debaters  confine  themselves  mostly  to  New  England  Puritan 
forms,  or  those  of  New  York,  Pennsylvania  or  New  Jersey. 

In  the  days  the  Puritans  formulated  the  blue  laws, 
Virginia  was  looked  upon  as  the  home  of  high  living  and 
frivolity.  Even  to  this  day  few  would  look  for  such 
measures  among  that  old  aristocratic  colony. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Virginians  of  the  seventeenth 
century,  had  a  habit  of  enacting  indigo-tinted  laws,  and 
likewise  enforcing  them,  which  might  have  made  the  Puri- 
tans sit  up  late  at  night  to  beat  them. 

Aside  from  the  stern  and  vindictive  intolerance  which 
finds  utterance  in  the  acts  of  the  Virginia  Assembly  be- 
tween the  years  1662  and  1680,  the  most  striking  element  in 


260  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

them  is  the  tremendous  premium  placed  upon  spying  and 
informing.  In  most  every  case  in  which  such  a  reward  is 
possible  the  law  encouraged  the  man  to  spy  upon  his  neigh- 
bor. 

If  the  Virginia  husbands  agreed  with  Kipling  that  "a 
woman  is  only  a  woman,  but  a  good  cigar  is  a  smoke, ' '  the 
following  act  must  have  been  the  occasion  of  much  domestic 
infelicity. 

"If  a  married  woman  shall  slander  a  person  the  woman  shall 
be  punished  by  ducking,  and  if  the  damages  shall  be  adjudged 
more  than  500  pounds  of  tobacco  her  husband  shall  pay,  or  the 
woman  receive  a  ducking  for  every  500  pounds  so  adjudged 
against  her  husband  if  he  refused  to  pay  the  tobacco." 

Unless  a  man  was  well  stocked  with  the  divine  weed  it 
was  worth  while  to  attend  church  with  promptness  and 
regularity : 

"Enacted  that  the  Lord's  Day  be  kept  holy  and  no  journeys  or 
work  done  thereon,  and  all  persons  inhabiting  in  this  country 
shall  resort  every  Sunday  to  church  and  abide  there  quietly  and 
orderly  during  the  common  prayers  and  preaching,  upon  the 
penalty  of  being  fined  fifty  pounds  of  tobacco." 

Devices  for  public  instruction  and  amusement  were  not 
to  be  neglected  with  impunity,  even  by  the  courts  of  the 
colony,  as  witness  the  following : 

"The  Court  in  every  county  shall  set  up  near  the  courthouse, 
in  a  public  and  convenient  place,  a  pillory,  a  pair  of  stocks,  a 
whipping  post  and  a  ducking  stool.  Otherwise  the  Court  shall  be 
fined  5,000  pounds  of  tobacco." 

There  is  no  record  of  the  Court  ever  having  been 
mulcted  of  tobacco  for  depriving  the  people  of  the  oppor- 
tunity to  watch  the  sufferings  of  their  friends  and  neigh- 
bors. 

Severe  laws  were  directed  against  Quakers.  Prior  legis- 
lation had  attempted  to  put  a  damper  on  being  any  kind  of 
a  "separatist,"  which  meant  any  fellow  who  didn't  agree 
with  the  Established  Church.  Evidently  a  little  further 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  261 

law  on  the  subject  was  thought  necessary,  for  in  1663  the 
Virginia  Assembly  passed  the  following  act : 

"Any  person  inhabiting  this  country,  and  entertaining  a 
Quaker  in  or  near  his  house,  shall,  for  every  time  of  such  enter- 
tainment, be  fined  5,000  pounds  of  tobacco,  half  to  the  county, 
half  to  the  informer." 

Even  Virginia  hospitality  might  well  have  paused  in 
the  face  of  such  a  flying  start  toward  bankruptcy. 

That  a  stowaway  might  prove  costly  is  demonstrated 
by  the  following : 

"Every  master  of  a  vessel  that  shall  bring  any  Quakers  to 
reside  here  after  July  1  of  this  year  shall  be  fined  5,000  pounds 
of  tobacco,  to  be  levied  by  distress  and  sale  of  his  goods,  and  he 
then  shall  be  made  to  carry  him,  her  or  them  out  of  the  country 
again." 

Evidently  a  little  thing  like  a  couple  of  years  in  servi- 
tude did  not  deter  the  lovers  of  pork  chops  from  appro- 
priating their  neighbors'  swine,  for  in  1679  the  Assembly 
delivered  themselves  of  the  following  act : 

"The  first  offense  of  hog  stealing  shall  be  punished  according 
to  the  former  law;  upon  a  second  offense  the  offender  shall  stand 
for  two  hours  in  the  pillory  and  shall  lose  his  ears,  and  for  the 
third  offense  shall  be  tried  by  the  laws  of  England  as  in  case  of 
felony." 

As  the  English  law  of  the  period  usually  prescribed 
hanging  for  a  twice  convicted  felon,  it  is  presumed  that  the 
third  dose  of  justice  proved  an  efficient  remedy. 

Not  only  in  the  stringency  of  their  laws  did  the  gray 
cavaliers  of  the  Old  Dominion  run  neck  and  neck  with  the 
grim-visaged  gentry  of  Plymouth  Rock,  but  the  doubtful 
honor  of  being  the  last  to  relinquish  the  gentle  art  of  witch- 
craft persecution  probably  belongs  to  them  as  well. 

The  witchbaiters  around  Salem  and  throughout  New 
England  generally  ceased  to  a  considerable  extent  their 
punishment  for  alleged  witchcraft  before  the  eighteenth 
century,  but  the  Virginian  records  show  the  arrest  and  per- 


262  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

Becution  of  Grace  Sherwood,  of  Princess  Anne  County,  for 
witchcraft  in  1706. 

For  six  months  this  young  woman  was  imprisoned,  be^ 
ing  brought  time  and  again  before  the  court  in  an  effort  to 
convict  her.  Finding  no  evidence  in  her  actions  to  justify 
the  persecution,  the  Attorney-General  caused  the  Sheriff  of 
the  county  to  impanel  a  jury  of  women  to  examine  Grace 
Sherwood  physically  and  instructed  them  to  find  something 
to  indicate  that  she  was  a  witch.  This  the  women  failed  to 
do  and  they  were  threatened  with  contempt  of  court  for 
their  failure. 

Everything  else  having  failed,  it  was  decided  to  put 
Miss  Sherwood  to  the  water  test,  which  consisted  in  tying 
her  hands  and  feet  and  throwing  her  overboard  in  the 
nearest  lake  or  river.  If  she  sank  she  was  innocent,  but  if 
by  her  struggles  she  managed  to  keep  afloat  for  a  few 
moments,  she  was  guilty  of  witchcraft. 

The  full  account  of  this  trial  is  preserved  by  the  Vir- 
ginia Historical  Society,  and  the  last  two  court  orders  in 
the  case  are  of  interest  as  marking  the  close  of  witchcraft 
persecution  in  the  colonies. 

"Whereas,  Grace  Sherwood,  being  suspected  of  witchcraft, 
have  a  long  time  waited  for  a  fit  opportunity  for  a  further  ex- 
amination, &  by  her  consent  &  approbacon  of  ye  court,  it  is 
ordered  that  ye  sheriff  take  all  such  convenient  assistance  of 
boats  and  men  and  shall  be  by  him  thought  fit  to  meet  at  Jno. 
Harpers  plantation,  in  order  to  take  ye  Grace  Sherwood  forth- 
with and  BUTT  her  into  the  water  above  a  man's  debth  &  try 
her  how  she  swims  therein,  always  having  care  of  her  life  to  pre- 
serve her  from  drowning,  &  as  soon  as  she  comes  out  that  he 
request  as  many  antient  and  knowing  women  as  possible  he  can 
to  search  her  carefully  for  all  spottes  &  marks  about  her  body 
not  usuall  on  others,  &  that  as  they  find  the  same  to  make  report 
on  oath  to  ye  truth  thereof  to  ye  court,  and  further  it  is  ordered 
that  some  woman  be  requested  to  shift  and  search  her  before  she 
goes  into  ye  water,  that  she  carry  nothing  about  her  to  cause 
further  suspicion." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  263 

On  the  afternoon  of  July  10,  1706,  the  court  and  county 
officers  and  populace  assembled  on  John  Harper's  plan- 
tation, and  the  arrangements  being  completed,  Grace  Sher- 
wood was  carrid  out  to  a  narby  inlet  of  Lynnhaven  Bay. 
The  official  court  reporter  tells  quaintly  the  rest  of  the 
story : 

"Whereas,  on  complaint  of  Luke  Hill  in  behalf  of  her 
Magisty,  that  now  is  against  Grace  Sherwood  for  a  person  suspec 
ted  of  witchcraft,  &  having  had  sundry  evidences  sworn  against 
her,  proving  manny  cercumstances,  &  which,  she  could  not  make 
any  excuse  or  little  or  nothing  to  say  in  her  own  behalf,  only 
seeming  too  rely  on  what  ye  court  should  do,  and  thereupon  con- 
sented to  be  tried  in  ye  water,  &  likewise  to  be  serched  againe 
with  expermints;  being  tried,  and  she  swimming  when  therein  & 
bound,  contray  to  custom  and  ye  judgments  of  all  ye  spectators, 
&  afterwards  being  searched  by  five  antient  women  who  have  all 
declared  on  oath  that  she  is  not  like  them;  all  of  which  cercum- 
stances ye  court  weighing  in  their  consideraoon,  do  therefore 
order  that  ye  sheriff  take  ye  said  Grace  Sherwood  into  his  custody 
&  comit  her  body  to  ye  common  goal  of  this  county,  there  to 
secure  her  by  irons,  or  otherwise  there  to  remain  till  such  time  as 
he  shall  be  otherwise  directed." 

The  woman  was  finally  turned  free,  and  thus  ended  the 
last  legal  prosecution  for  witchcraft  in  the  colony. 


264  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


ELIJAH  CLARKE. 

BY  MRS.  JOHN  H.  MORGAN,  Regent  Brunswick  Chapter, 
T).  A.  R. 

It  is  to  be  regretted  that  our  historians  have  given  so 
little  space  to  one  of  our  Georgia  patriots  of  the  Revolu- 
tion— Elijah  Clarke.  One  of  our  greatest  national  needs  is 
that  of  commemorating  the  memories  of  our  men  who 
"did  greatly,"  who  fought,  suffered  and  endured  for  our 
national  independence.  This  is  one  of  the  prime  objects 
of  the  existence  of  the  Society  of  the  Daughters  of  the 
American  Revolution;  "To  perpetuate  the  memory  of  the 
Spirit  of  the  men  who  achieved  American  Independenct. " 

Among  the  many  contributed  to  this  great  cause  by 
Georgia,  was  Elijah  Clarke.  After  the  fall  of  Georgia,  for 
the  time  being,  many  of  our  most  distinguished  men  be- 
came voluntary  exiles  among  their  "brethren"  in  the 
West.  Among  tn"e  most  prominent  of  these  was  Colonel 
Clarke;  one  to  whom  our  liberty  and  the  justness  of  the 
cause  was  dear. 

He  did  not  give  up  hope;  for  his  heart  was  filled  with 
the  desire  to  return  and  renew  the  contest.  He  employed 
his  entire  time  in  the  preparation  of  a  sufficient  force  that 
would  enable  him  to  return  when  the  opportunity  should 
present  itself. 

Augusta  was  the  key  to  the  northern  part  of  the  state, 
and  its  possession  was  of  great  importance  to  our  patriots. 
Upon  hearing  that  the  time  for  the  arrival  of  the  annual 
Indian  presents  was  near,  the  desire  to  recover  Augusta 
became,  to  Colonel  Clarke,  irresistible.  He  immediately  set 
about  collecting  troops  and  his  arguments  were  so  success- 
ful that  in  a  very  short  time  five  hundred  enthusiastic 
warriors  and  men  from  the  hills  were  assembled  and 
marched  to  Augusta. 

Upon  their  arrival,  the  division  under  Major  Taylor 
attacked  the  Indian  camp  on  Hawks  Gully,  thereby  draw- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  265 

ing  the  British  under  Colonel  Thomas  Brown  to  the  sup- 
port of  the  Indian  allies,  leaving  the  south  and  west  of  the 
city  unguarded.  Colonel  Clarke  entered  at  the  points,  with 
the  remainder  of  his  army,  captured  the  garrison  and 
finally,  driving  out  Colonel  Brown,  occupied  the  town. 

The  British  under  Colonel  Brown,  after  being  driven 
out  of  Augusta,  took  refuge  in  a  strong  house  called  Sey- 
mour's White  House,  which  they  had  fortified. 

Colonel  Clarke  besieged  them  and  was  on  the  point  of 
capturing  them,  after  a  four  days  siege,  when  Col.  Cruger, 
coming  with  another  British  force  compelled  Clarke  to 
retreat. 

Lord  Cornwallis  ordered  Colonel  Ferguson  to  intercept 
Colonel  Clarke.  Just  as  Col.  Ferguson  started  to  carry 
out  these  orders,  he  heard  that  a  new  enemy  was  approach- 
ing, for  the  very  purpose  of  doing  just  what  Colonel 
Clarke  had  failed  to  do.  This  force  consisted  of  rifle 
militia  and  had  been  drawn  from  Kentucky,  the  western 
country  of  Virginia  and  North  Carolina,  and  was  under  the 
command  of  the  famous  independent  colonels,  Campbell, 
Cleveland,  Williams,  Sevier  and  Shelby.  Upon  hearing  of 
Clarke's  repulse  and  of  Ferguson's  orders  to  intercept 
Clarke,  they  gave  up  their  enterprise  on  Colonel  Brown, 
and  turned  against  Ferguson ;  which  ended  in  a  crushing 
defeat  for  the  British  and  the  destruction  of  Colonel  Fer- 
guson at  King's  Mountain. 

"Although  Clarke  failed  in  the  reduction  of  Augusta, 
his  attempt  led  to  the  destruction  of  Ferguson;  and  with 
it  to  the  present  relief  of  North  Carolina."  Such  is  the 
testimony  of  "Light  Horse"  Harry  Lee,  his  companion  in 
arms,  and  the  father  of  our  beloved  General  Robert  B. 
Lee. 

General  Clarke,  as  he  became,  was  brave  and  patriotic, 
and  his  services  during  the  Revolution  were  valuable  to  the 
country,  and  deserve  the  recognition  of  his  state.  He  died 
December  15th,  1799 — one  day  after  the  death  of  Wash- 
ington. 


266  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

"Poor  is  the  nation  that  boasts  no  heroes,  but  beggared 
is  that  country  that  having  them,  forgets. ' ' 

General  Clarke  was  one  of  Georgia's  heroes.  Let  us 
honor  him. 


GENERAL  FRANCIS  MARION. 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  General  Francis  Marion 
and  a  pleasant  duty  it  is  to  revive  the  memory  of  this 
almost  forgotten  hero  who  was  one  of  the  most  famous 
warriors  of  the  American  Revolution.  General  Nathaniel 
Greene  had  often  been  heard  to  say  that  the  page  of  his- 
tory had  never  furnished  his  equal. 

He  was  born  near  Georgetown,  South  Carolina,  of 
French  parents,  who  were  refugees  to  this  country  after 
the  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes.  From  them  he 
inherited  that  love  of  liberty  which  had  caused  them  to 
forsake  home  and  friends  and  commence  a  new  life  among 
strangers  that  they  might  enjoy  freedom  of  thought  and 
guson  at  King's  Mountain. 

He  manifested  early  in  life  a  love  of  adventure.  His 
first  warlike  experience  was  against  the  Indians.  He  served 
as  a  Lieutenant  of  volunteers.  In  his  encounters  with  the 
savages  he  showed  such  courage  and  skill  that  he  soon  be- 
came famous,  and  to  his  credit,  it  must  be  said,  he  was 
always  humane  and  just. 

When  war  was  declared  against  England  and  troops 
had  to  be  raised,  Marion  received  a  Captain's  commission. 
He  went  forth  to  raise  a  company.  Money  was  lacking  and 
he  had  to  depend  entirely  on  volunteers.  He  very  soon, 
however,  succeeded  in  getting  his  complement  of  men  and 
was  unexcelled  in  his  dealings  with  these  raw  recruits.  He 
could  enter  into  their  feelings  and  appreciate  their  con- 
duct. He  did  not  exact  impossibilities  of  them  and  he  was 
celebrated  for  what  was  called  his  patience  with  the  militia. 

No  service  was  ever  more  strictly  voluntary  than  that 
of  those  who  constituted  the  company  known  as  "Marion's 


MONUMENT,    SITE  OF   OLD    FORT   CORNWALLIS,   AUGUSTA,    GA, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  267 

Men"  and  he  led  them  to  perform  deeds  of  valor  which 
seem  almost  incredible.  There  was  an  air  of  mysterious 
daring  in  what  he  undertook,  which  gave  a  charm  to  the 
life  his  followers  led,  while  they  had  the  most  perfect  con- 
fidence in  their  leader.  Insubordination  was  rare  among 
his  men  on  account  of  their  devotion  to  him.  If  it  did 
occur  he  usually  visited  it  by  dismissal  from  his  band. 
This  ignorminy  was  dreaded  more  than  any  other  mode  of 
punishment.  He  seldom  resorted  to  the  military  methods  of 
severe  discipline.  His  band  was  composed  largely  of  the 
planters,  and  some  of  them  were  boys  who  lived  in  the  sec- 
tion of  the  country  where  his  daring  exploits  harrassed  so 
severely  the  British.  These  men  were  devoted  to  field 
sports  and  were  consequently  fine  riders  and  marksmen. 

Marion  and  his  men  are  connected  ;with  the  most 
romantic  adventures  of  the  Revolution,  equal  to  any  we  have 
read  of  in  song  or  story.  The  writer  has  often  listened 
with  intense  interest  to  the  accounts  given  by  her  grand- 
father of  the  recitals  of  his  party.  William  Pope,  who  was 
one  of  "Marion's  Men,"  tells  of  the  many  hazardous  under- 
takings against  the  British  and  Tories.  The  famous  rides 
at  night  when  they  would  leave  their  hidden  places  in  the 
swamps,  or  some  forest  so  densely  wooded  that  they  alone 
knew  the  trails  by  which  they  found  their  way  in  and  out ; 
how  they  would  start  on  one  of  their  swift  rides  to  inter- 
cept the  passing  of  British  troops  from  one  post  to  another 
or  attack  an  army  wagon  train  with  provisions  and  ammu- 
nition, etc.  The  descent  of  Marion  and  his  men  would  be 
so  sudden  that  the  enemy  would  be  completely  demoralized. 

Marion  kept  bands  of  scouts  constantly  watching  the 
enemy  and  by  this  means  he  was  enabled  to  give  our  army 
most  valuable  information. 

At  one  time  our  hero  and  his  men  learning  of  the  en- 
campment of  some  British  troops  near  a  river,  started  out 
to  attack  them  at  midnight.  They  had  to  ride  many  miles 
to  reach  the  river  and  in  crossing  the  bridge  the  noise  of 
the  horses  aroused  the  sentinels  of  the  enemy  and  they 


268  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

were  prepared  for  resistance.  The  fight  which  ensued  was 
a  fierce  one,  but  ever  after  that  experience,  when  Marion 
found  it  necessary  to  cross  a  bridge,  he  made  the  men  dis- 
mount and  spread  their  blankets  over  the  bridge  to  muffle 
the  sound  of  the  horses  feet.  It  was  a  rule  with  him  never 
to  use  a  bridge  when  he  could  ford  a  river,  and  he  burned  all 
bridges  for  which  he  had  no  use.  These  long  rapid  rides 
were  exhausting  to  man  and  beasts.  They  returned  as 
rapidly  as  they  went  forth  and  when  they  reached  their 
place  of  safety,  they  would  secure  their  horses,  throw  them- 
selves on  the  ground  with  only  a  blanket  and  a  saddle  for 
a  pillow  and  sleep  so  soundly  they  would  be  unconscious  of 
the  falling  rain  and  often  awaken  in  the  morning  to  find 
themselves  surrounded  by  water.  Amid  all  these  scenes  of 
hardship  there  were  times  when  this  band  of  devoted 
patriots  indulged  in  revelry,  as  they  were  safely  gathered 
around  the  camp  fires  among  the  lofty  moss-draped  cypress 
trees  and  gum  trees  of  the  swamps  to  enjoy  the  captured 
supplies  from  the  enemy's  commissary  stores,  which  en- 
abled them  to  supply  themselves  with  clothing,  arms 
and  ammunition.  Thus  they  largely  provided  for  their  own 
subsistence  by  their  daring  prowess. 

The  British  established  a  line  of  military  posts  in  South 
Carolina  extending  from  Georgetown  to  Charleston.  They 
found  it  exceedingly  difficult  to  hold  any  communication, 
for  Marion's  scouts  were  always  on  the  lookout  to  report 
their  movements.  Colonel  Watson,  of  the  enemy,  attemp- 
ted to  take  a  regiment  from  one  post  to  another.  He  was 
so  harrassed  by  the  sharpshooting  of  ' '  Marion 's  Men ' '  who 
lay  in  ambush  along  his  route,  that  he  sent  a  letter  by  flag  of 
truce  to  Marion  reproaching  him  for  fighting  like  a  savage 
and  invited  him  to  come  out  in  open  field  and  fight  like  a 
gentleman.  But  Marion  was  too  shrewd  to  put  in  open 
field  his  comparatively  small  band,  with  their  peculiar  mode 
of  warfare,  against  a  far  greater  number  of  finely  drilled 
regulars  of  the  enemy  and  Colonel  Watson  had  to  retreat 
and  encamp  his  men  in  the  first  open  field  he  could  find 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  269 

Marion  had  a  number  of  interviews  by  flag  of  truce  with 
British  officers.    One  of  the  most  noted  is  the  one  in  which 
he  entertained  the  officer  at  dinner.    After  business  affairs 
had  been  settled  General  Marion  invited  the  officer  to  dine 
with  him  and  he  accepted.     Marion  ordered  dinner.     The 
officer  looked  around  with  curosity  as  he  saw  no  prepara- 
tions for  dinner  and  his  surprise  was  great  when  the  cook 
placed  before  him  on  a  piece  of  bark  a  few  sweet  potatoes 
which  had  been  roasted  in  the  fire  near  by.     The  officer 
remarked  to  Marion  that  he  supposed  his  supplies  had 
fallen  short,  endeavoring  to  relieve  Marion  of  any  embar- 
rassment he  thought  he  might  feel  in  offering  him  such 
meager  fare,  but  Marion  replied  that  he  considered  himself 
fortunate,  as  he  had  a  guest  that  day,  he  had  that  much 
to  offer  him.     The  officer  was  amazed  and  profoundly  im- 
pressed with  what  he  had  seen.     He  returned  to  his  com- 
mand with  such  feelings  of  admiration  and  respect  for  men 
who  endured  so  cheerfully  such  privations  and  so  many 
hardships  for  the  sake  of  liberty,  that  he  said  it  was  use- 
less to  fight  such  men,  that  they  were  entitled  to  liberty  and 
he  would  not  continue  to  fight  against  them.    He  resigned 
his  commission  in  the  army. 

The  enemy  at  this  time  had  absolute  command  of  this 
portion  of  South  Carolina  excepting  as  they  were  dis- 
turbed by  Marion.  He  shifted  from  swamp  to  swamp  and 
thicket  to  thicket  and  never  relaxed  his  struggle  for  liberty. 
So  harrassed  were  the  enemy  by  him,  they  determined  a 
number  of  times  to  make  a  special  effort  to  capture  him  or 
drive  him  out  of  the  state.  All  in  vain.  Marion  was  too 
alert  and  often  met  them  with  more  promptness  than  they 
desired. 

Colonel  Tarleton,  a  British  officer,  with  a  reputation 
for  great  activity  undertook  one  of  these  expeditions 
against  Marion  and  narrowly  escaped  being  captured  him- 
self. He  retreated  from  his  attack  exclaiming  to  his  men 
"Come  on  boys,  we  will  go  back,  there  is  no  catching  this 


270  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

'  Swamp  Fox '. ' '  By  this  same  name  he  was  ever  afterward 
called  by  his  followers. 

When  Gen.  Nathaniel  Greene  took  command  of  the 
Southern  Army,  he  wrote  to  General  Marion  and  begged 
him  to  remain  in  his  independent  position  and  keep  the 
army  supplied  with  intelligence,  in  which  important  part 
he  rendered  most  active  service,  also  in  the  battles  of 
Georgetown,  Ninety  Six,  Charleston,  Savannah  and  others. 
So  highly  appreciated  by  the  Government  was  the  brave 
and  valuable  part  performed  by  Marion  and  his  men,  that 
Congress  passed  a  series  of  resolutions  expressing  the 
gratitude  of  the  country  to  them. 

Governor  Rutledge  appointed  him  Brigadier-General. 
In  addition  to  the  usual  military  rank,  extraordinary 
powers  were  conferred  upon  him,  such  as  were  only  granted 
to  extraordinary  men. 

In  the  circumstances  of  life,  there  was  a  remarkable 
resemblance  between  him  and  the  great  Washington.  They 
were  both  volunteers  in  the  service  of  their  country.  They 
learned  the  military  art  in  Indian  warfare.  They  were 
both  soldiers  so  vigilant  that  no  enemy  could  ever  surprise 
them  and  so  equal  in  undaunted  valor  that  nothing  could 
disturb  them,  and  even  in  the  private  incidents  of  their 
lives,  the  resemblance  between  these  two  great  men  was 
closer  than  common.  They  were  both  born  in  the  same 
year,  both  lost  fathers  early  in  life,  both  married  excellent, 
wealthy  wives,  both  left  widows  and  both  died  childless. 

In  reviewing  the  life  of  Gen.  Marion,  we  find  patient 
courage,  firmness  in  danger,  resolution  in  adversity,  hardy 
endurance  amid  suffering  and  want.  He  lived  that  liberty 
might  not  die  and  never  relinquished  his  sword  until  the 
close  of  the  war.  He  then  retired  to  his  plantation  near 
Eutaw,  where  he  died.  His  last  words  were :  ' '  Thank  God, 
since  I  have  come  to  man 's  estate,  I  have  never  intentionally 
done  wrong  to  any  man. ' ' 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  271 

Marion 's  remains  are  in  the  church  yard  at  Belle  Isle  in 
the  parish  of  St.  John's  Berkely.  Over  them  is  a  marble 
slab  upon  which  is  the  following  inscription : 

"  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Brigadier-General  Francis 
Marion,  who  departed  this  life  on  the  twenty-ninth  of 
February,  1795,  in  the  sixty-third  year  of  his  age,  deeply 
regretted  by  all  of  his  fellow  citizens.  History  will  recall 
his  worth  and  rising  generations  will  embalm  his  memory 
as  one  of  the  most  distinguished  patriots  and  heroes  of 
the  American  Revolution ;  who  elevated  his  native  country 
to  honor  and  independence  and  accrued  to  her  the  bless- 
ings and  liberty  of  peace. ' '  This  tribute  of  veneration  and 
gratitude  is  erected  in  commemoration  of  the  noble  and 
distinguished  virtues  of  the  citizen  and  of  the  gallant  ex- 
ploits of  the  soldier  who  lived  without  fear  and  died  with- 
out reproach. 

This  brief  and  imperfect  sketch  of  one  of  the  most 
noted  military  men  of  his  day  has  led  to  the  reflection  that 
many  of  the  most  valiant  leaders  of  the  Revolution  are 
comparatively  little  known  among  the  rising  generation. 
The  old  histories  written  in  the  early  part  of  this  century 
which  recorded  their  brilliant  deeds  and  virtues,  are  out 
of  print,  a  few  to  be  found  in  old  libraries,  and  the  old 
readers  which  were  used  in  the  schools  forty  and  fifty  years 
ago  were  full  of  the  accounts  of  their  achievements,  which 
thrilled  the  hearts  of  the  students  and  stimulated  in  them 
a  love  of  country,  as  only  such  deeds  of  valor  could  inspire. 
But  today  these  heroes  who  taught  us  such  lessons  of 
patriotism  have  passed  away  forgotten,  others  scarcely  a 
memory.  Ought  it  to  be  so  ? 

As  our  society  is  for  the  purpose  of  advancing  the  cause 
of  patriotism,  no  effort  on  the  part  of  its  members  would 
do  more  to  bring  this  about  than  for  some  of  them  situated 
in  different  parts  of  our  country  to  unite  in  collecting 
material  for  a  new  reader  for  the  use  of  schools  in  which 
the  deeds  of  these  revolutionary  patriots  would  be  once 


272  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

more  revived  and  made  conspicuous  to  those  who  should 
ever  hold  them  in  grateful  veneration. 

This  thought  is  one  that  might  advantageously  engage 
the  attention  of  some  national  publisher  who  might  employ 
compilers  from  different  localities  of  our  country  for  this 
purpose. 

Among  the  ' '  Readers ' '  alluded  to,  was  a  tribute  to  Gen. 
Marion  and  his  men,  which  was  at  the  same  time  a  graphic 
account  of  their  lives  and  services.  It  was  written  by  one 
of  our  favorable  national  poets,  William  Cullen  Bryant,  and 
was  a  favorite  selection  for  declamation  among  American 
juvenile  orators  many  years  ago.  It  has  disappeared  from 
the  modern  editions  of  "Readers,"  but  would  fitly  embel- 
lish a  new  "American  Speaker,"  a  book  which  would  be 
popular  throughout  our  land  in  these  days  of  Sons  and 
Daughters  of  the  Revolution. 

This  suggestion  will  be  enhanced  by  the  reproduction 
of  the  ringing  lines  with  which  this  article  will  close : 


SONG  OF  MARION'S  MEN. 

Our  band  is  few,  but  true  and  tried, 

Our  leader  frank  and  bold; 
The  British  soldier  trembles 

When  Marion's  name  is  told. 
Our  fortress  is  the  good  green  wood, 

Our  tent  the  cypress  tree; 
We  know  the  forest  'round  us, 

As  Seamen  know  the  sea; 
We  know  its  wall  of  thorny  vines, 

Its  glades  of  reedy  grass; 
It's  safe  and  silent  islands 

Within  the  dark  morass. 

Woe  to  the  British  soldiery, 
That  little  dread  us  near; 

On  them  shall  light  at  midnight 
A  strange  and  sudden  fear; 

When  waking  to  their  tents  on  fire, 
They  grasp  their  arms  in  vain, 


EEMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  273 

And  they  who  stand  to  face  us 

Are  beat  to  earth  again, 
And  they  who  fly  in  terror  deem 

A  mighty  host  behind 
And  hear  the  tramp  of  thousands 

Upon  the  hollow  wind. 

Then  sweet  the  hour  that  brings  release 

From  dangers  and  from  toil; 
We  talk  the  battle  over 

And  share  the  battle  spoil. 
The  woodland  rings  with  laugh  and  shout 

As  if  a  hunt  were  up, 
And  woodland  flowers  are  gathered 

To  crown  the  soldiers'  cup. 
With  merry  sounds  we  mock  the  wind 

That  in  the  pine  top  grieves, 
And  slumber  long  and  sweetly 

On  beds  of  oaken  leaves. 

Well  knows  the  fair  and  friendly  moon, 

The  band  that  Marion  leads; 
The  glitter  of  their  rifles, 

The  scampering  of  their  steeds. 
'Tis  life  to  guide  the  fiery  barb, 

Across  the  moonlit  plain ; 
'Tis  life  to  feel  the  night  wind 

That  lifts  his  tossing  mane. 
A  moment  in  the  British  camp, 

A  moment  and  away; 
Back  to  the  pathless  forest, 

Before  the  peep  of  day. 

Grave  men  there  are  by  broad  Santee, 

Grave  men  with  hoary  hairs. 
Their  hearts  are  all  with  Marion, 

Tor  Marion  are  their  prayers ; 
And  lovely  ladies  greet  our  band 

With  kindliest  welcoming, 
With  smiles  like  those  of  summer, 

And  with  tears  like  those  of  spring. 


2*74  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

For  them  we  wear  these  trusty  arms 

And  lay  them  down  no  more, 
Till  we  have  driven  the  Briton 

Forever  from  our  shore. 

— Mrs.  F.  H.  Orme,  Atlanta  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


"LIGHT  HORSE  HARRY." 

The  Lee  family  was  illustrious  both  in  England  and 
America.  They  clearly  trace  their  ancestry  to  the  Norman 
Conquest,  Launcelot  Lee  being  the  founder  of  the  family. 
The  Lees  were  prominent  in  English  history  down  to  the 
colonization  of  this  country.  Robert  E.  Lee  is  descended 
from  Richard  Lee,  a  younger  son  of  the  Earl  of  Litchfield, 
who  was  sent  to  this  country  in  1641  during  the  reign  of 
Charles  I.  He  came  as  colonial  secretary  under  Sir  Wil- 
liam Berkeley.  He  was  loyal  to  the  royal  party  during  the 
struggle  between  the  Cavaliers  and  Roundheads.  Richard 
Lee,  second  son  of  the  Richard  mentioned  above,  was  born 
in  Virginia  in  1646  and  educated  in  England  and  studied 
law.  He  took  an  active  part  in  colonial  legislation.  His 
son,  Thomas,  was  the  first  to  establish  himself  in  West- 
moreland County.  He  was  very  prominent  in  the  early 
history  of  the  state.  The  fine  mansion  of  Stratford  was 
built  for  him  by  the  East  India  company,  and  several  of 
the  prominent  Lees  were  born  in  that  home.  Henry  Lee, 
the  son  of  Richard  Lee,  filled  no  prominent  place  in  colonial 
history.  He  married  a  Miss  Bland  and  had  three  children, 
the  second  son  being  Henry,  who  married  a  Miss  Grymes 
in  1753.  He  left  six  sons  and  five  daughters,  the  third  son 
being  Henry,  the  ancestor  of  R.  E.  Lee.  He  went  to  Prince- 
ton and  was  preparing  to  study  law  when  hostilities  with 
England  changed  his  plans.  When  quite  young  he  raised  a 
company  of  cavalry  and  soon  after  the  battle  of  Lexington 
joined  Washington's  forces.  He  soon  became  noted  as  an 
able  leader  and  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  lieutenant- 
colonel  and  had  command  of  "Lee's  Legion,"  consisting 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  275 

of  infantry  and  cavalry.  He  was  actively  engaged  in  the 
service  to  the  close  of  the  war  and  was  conspicuous  in  this 
state  for  some  time.  Owing  to  his  rapid  movements  he  was 
known  as  "Light  Horse  Harry."  About  1781  he  married 
his  cousin,  a  daughter  of  Colonel  Philip  Ludwell  Lee,  of 
Stratford.  Four  children  were  born  to  them,  all  of  whom 
died  except  one  son.  The  wife  died  in  1790.  He  was  elec- 
ted to  congress  and  afterwards  was  governor  of  Virginia. 
He  next  married  Miss  Anne  Hill  Carter,  daughter  of 
Charles  Carter,  of  Shirley.  He  again  entered  political  life 
and  was  elected  to  the  general  assembly.  The  children  of  his 
second  marriage  were  Charles  Carter,  Sidney  Smith, 
Robert  E.,  Anne  and  Mildred.  Robert  Edward  Lee  was 
born  in  the  Stratford  mansion  in  which  two  signers  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  were  born.  In  1811  Henry 
Lee  moved  to  Alexandria  to  educate  his  children.  Here 
he  was  made  major-general  during  the  war  of  1812.  He 
was  the  author  of  "First  in  war,  first  in  peace,  first  in  the 
hearts  of  his  countrymen,"  when  pronouncing  a  eulogy  on 
Washington.  His  health  failed  in  1817  and  he  was  induced 
to  make  a  trip  to  the  West  Indies,  but  finding  that  he  was 
not  benefited,  he  returned  and  landed  on  the  coast  of  Geor- 
gia, where  he  enjoyed  the  hospitality  of  a  daughter  of  his 
old  friend,  General  Nathaniel  Greene,  who  was  living  in 
the  family  residence  on  Cumberland  Island.  After  linger- 
ing a  short  time  he  died  and  was  buried  there,  March 
25,  1818. 

General  A.  C.  Long  wrote  the  memoirs  of  R.  E.  Lee. 
He  publishes  an  incident  which  occurred  in  1862,  when 
Lee  was  sent  to  this  state  to  examine  our  lines  and  means 
of  defense.  General  Long  accompanied  him.  When  they 
reached  Savannah  General  Lee  secured  a  vessel  and  went 
to  Cumberland  Island.  He  had  the  boat  anchored  and  the 
two  went  on  shore.  They  entered  the  old  Greene  mansion, 
which  was  in  bad  condition.  Going  through  that  to  the 
rear,  General  Lee  went  alone  to  an  old  neglected  cemetery. 
After  that  he  returned  with  a  flower  in  his  hand,  but  never 


276  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

spoke  a  word  about  the  visit  to  his  father's  grave.  In 
silence  he  showed  his  reverence ;  with  his  usual  modesty  he 
refrained  from  speaking  about  it.  From  that  old  cemetery 
on  Cumberland  Island  the  body  of  "Light  Horse  Harry" 
Lee,  ninety-five  years  after  his  death,  was  carried  back  to 
his  old  Virginia  home  and  laid  in  its  final  resting  place. 


OUR  LEGACY. 

Our  brave  Forefathers :  give  them  place 
In  Hall  of  Fame — the  Nation's  heart; 

They  met  the  foe,  aye  face  to  face: 
Each  man  a  hero,  did  his  part — 

Invincible  to  fear,  and  wrought 
For  us  and  ours,  beyond  his  thought. 

0  fair  Republic:  pride  and  boast 

Of  children  who  cannot  forget — 
From  lake  to  gulf,  from  coast  to  coast 

Where  waves  the  Flag  with  colors  set 
In  patriot  blood,  which  ne'er  shall  fade — 

That  Flag  is  ows,  its  price  they  paid. 

We,  daughters  of  a  loyal  line, 

Would  weave  their  deathless  deeds  in  song, 
With  memory's  fairest  flowers  entwine 

Sweet  garlands  which  shall  linger  long, 
Who  die  for  Grod  and  Country  share 
Immortal  honors  other-where. 

— Hannah  A.  Foster  in  American  Monthly  Magazine 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  277 


THE  RIDE  OF  MARY  SLOCUMB. 

In  the  prologue  to  "The  Princess,"  Tennyson  makes 
one  of  the  group  of  collegemates  assembled  during  the 
holiday  season  at  Vivian  Place  find  in  an  old  chronicle  the 
story  of  a  brave  woman  whom  a  wild  king  besieged.  But 
she  armed 

"Her  own  fair  head,  and  sallying  through  the  gate, 
Had  beat  her  foes  with  slaughter  from  the  walls." 

"When  this  story  was  read  to  the  ladies  present,  one  of 
the  men  asked:  "Where  lives  there  such  a  woman  now?" 
To  which 

"Quick  answer'd  Lilia  'There  are  thousands  now 
Such  women,  but  convention  beats  them  down.' " 

On  the  first  day  of  February,  1776,  General  McDonald, 
chief  of  the  McDonald  clan  in  the  Cape  Fear  region,  issued 
a  proclamation,  calling  upon  all  true  and  loyal  Highlanders 
to  join  his  standard  at  Cross  Creek,  now  Fayetteville,  and 
prepare  to  assist  General  Clinton  and  Governor  Martin  in 
maintaining  the  king's  authority  in  the  province  of  North 
Carolina.  About  fifteen  or  sixteen  hundred  of  them  obeyed 
the  summons.  From  Cross  Creek  they  marched  down  the 
Cape  Fear  River  until  they  came  to  Moore's  creek,  where 
they  were  met  on  February  27th  by  a  Whig  force  about  a 
thousand  strong  under  the  command  of  Richard  Caswell, 
The  following  from  a  letter  from  Caswell  to  Cornelius 
Harnett  shows  the  result  of  the  meeting: 

"I  have  the  pleasure  to  acquaint  you  that  we  had  an  engage- 
ment with  the  Tories,  at  Widow  Moore's  creek  bridge,  on  the  27th 
current.  Our  army  was  about  one  thousand  strong,  consisting  of 
the  Newbern  Battalion  of  Minute  Men,  the  militia  from  Craven, 
Johnston,  Dobbs  and  Wake,  and  a  detachment  of  the  Wilmington 
Battalion  of  Minute  Men,  which  we  found  encamped  at  Moore's 
Creek  the  night  before  the  battle,  under  the  command  of  Colonel 
Lillington.  The  Tories  by  common  report  were  three  thousand, 
but  General  MacDonald,  whom  we  have  prisoner,  says  there  were 


278  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

about  fifteen  or  sixteen  hundred;  he  was  unwell  that  day  and  not 
in  the  battle.  Captain  McLeod,  who  seemed  to  be  principal  com- 
mander, and  Captain  John  Campbell,  are  among  the  slain." 

This  was  the  first  pitched  battle  of  the  Revolution  won 
by  the  Whigs;  the  only  victories  of  an  earlier  date  being 
the  capture  of  Forts  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point  on 
May  10,  1775.  It  would  be  difficult  to  overestimate  the  im- 
portance of  the  victory.  Besides  the  capture  of  about  900 
prisoners  and  2,000  stands  of  arms  of  which  the  Americans 
stood  in  great  need,  the  crushing  of  the  Tory  spirit  and  the 
corresponding  rise  of  the  Whig  spirit,  meant  untold 
strength  to  the  cause  of  freedom. 

But  it  is  not  the  political  nor  the  military  result  of  this 
battle  with  which  this  story  is  to  deal.  With  the  foregoing 
as  an  introduction,  it  is  interesting  now  to  turn  to  the  story 
of  the  heroine  of  Moore's  creek,  Mary  Slocumb. 

Mary  Slocumb  was  the  young  wife  of  Ezekiel  Slocumb, 
of  Wayne  County.  He  afterwards  became  a  prominent 
member  of  the  house  of  commons,  serving  in  the  session  of 
1812  to  1818.  She  was  but  yet  a  girl  when  her  husband 
rode  away  from  home  to  join  Caswell  in  crushing  McDonald 
and  the  enemies  of  liberty.  The  men  of  that  section,  more 
than  eighty  strong,  rode  away  one  calm  Sunday  morning, 
under  the  lead  of  Slocumb.  Before  the  long  ride  was 
begun,  his  young  wife  went  out  with  the  colonel  to  inspect 
the  men.  She  says  that  she  looked  at  them  well,  and  could 
see  that  every  man  meant  mischief.  No  doubt  it  was  a 
sturdy,  stern  and  determined  band  that  rode  away  that  day 
to  battle  for  their  rights.  These  men  rode  away  in  high 
spirits,  some  to  a  glorious  death,  some  to  a  glorious  victory ; 
none  to  defeat  or  dishonor. 

It  is  easy  to  imagine  what  a  long,  lonely  day  the  young 
wife  had  at  home  that  quiet  Sabbath  day;  it  is  easy  to 
imagine  where  her  thoughts  were ;  it  is  easy  to  imagine  how 
she  concealed  the  anxiety  of  her  heart  under  the  assumed 
cheerfulness  of  her  face.  "I  slept  soundly  and  quietly  that 
night, ' '  she  says,  ' '  and  worked  hard  all  the  next  day ;  but 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  279 

I  kept  thinking  where  they  had  got  to,  how  far,  where  and 
how  many  of  the  regulars  and  Tories  they  would  meet; 
and  I  could  not  keep  from  that  study." 

Going  to  bed  in  this  anxious  state  of  mind,  her  sleep  was 
disturbed  by  a  terrible  dream.  She  seemed  to  see  lying  on 
the  ground,  surrounded  by  the  dead  and  wounded,  a  body, 
motionless,  bloody,  ghostly,  wrapped  in  her  husband's 
cloak.  With  a  cry  of  alarm  she  sprang  to  her  feet  into  the 
middle  of  the  room.  So  vivid  was  the  impression  that  it 
remained  with  her  even  after  she  awakened  from  sleep 
and  in  rushing  forward  to  the  place  where  the  vision  ap- 
peared, she  ran  into  the  side  of  the  house.  The  light  was 
dim ;  all  around  was  quiet  arid  peaceful,  but  her  heart  kept 
up  a  great  commotion.  "If  ever  I  felt  fear,"  she  says,  "it 
was  at  that  moment. ' '  The  more  she  reflected  on  the  vision 
the  more  vivid  and  more  fearful  it  became,  until  at  last  she 
could  bear  the  suspense  no  longer  and  starting  up  she 
said  aloud: 

' '  I  must  go  to  him. ' ' 

In  the  stable  was  her  favorite  and  own  particular  horse, 
"as  fleet  and  easy  a  nag  is  ever  traveled."  In  an  instant, 
leaving  her  baby  and  the  house  in  the  care  of  the  nurse, 
she  rushed  out  to  the  barn,  saddled  her  mare,  and  in  less 
time  than  it  takes  to  tell  it,  was  flying  down  the  road  at 
full  speed. 

The  night  air  was  cool;  the  spirit  of  the  race  was  in 
the  nag;  and  mile  after  mile  was  quickly  left  behind,  as 
the  sound  of  her  rapidly  falling  hoofs  fell  clear  and  distinct 
in  the  quiet  night  air.  All  alone,  urged  onward  by  love  and 
fear,  this  brave  little  woman  swept  on  through  the  dark 
night,  dashing  over  bridges,  whirling  through  dark  woods, 
flashing  past  farm  houses,  until  when  the  sun  began  to 
appear  in  the  east  thirty  miles  lay  between  her  and  her 
quiet  home.  Shortly  after  sunrise  she  passed  a  group  of 
women  and  children  anxiously  awaiting  news  from  the 
troops.  From  these  she  learned  the  exact  route  taken  by 
Caswell  and  with  only  a  few  minutes'  stop  she  was  again 


280  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

skimming  over  the  ground.  There  was  no  flagging  in  her 
spirits,  nor  those  of  the  mare.  On  the  contrary,  the  excite- 
ment became  more  and  more  intense  the  nearer  they  got  to 
the  end  of  their  journey.  It  seemed  as  if  the  woman  had 
infused  her  spirits  into  the  horse. 

The  sun  was  well  up  when  a  new  excitement  was  added 
to  the  race — she  heard  a  sound  like  thunder  rolling  and 
rumbling  in  the  distance.  She  pulled  her  mare  up  sud- 
denly. What  was  it?  Though  she  had  never  heard  the 
sound  before,  she  knew  it  must  be  the  roar  of  the  cannon ; 
and  as  she  thought  of  what  it  meant,  the  blood  coursed 
more  rapidly  than  ever  through  her  veins;  she  was  more 
than  ever  impatient  to  be  on  the  scene,  and  away  she  dashed 
again.  But  then  a  thought  rushed  into  her  mind  that  for 
a  moment  made  her  feel  very  foolish  to  be  here  so  far 
away  from  home  and  child,  on  what  might  after  all  be  but 
a  fool's  errand. 

"What  a  fool  I  am,"  she  thought.  "My  husband  could 
not  be  dead  last  night,  if  the  battle  is  only  fighting  now. ' ' 

But  she  had  come  too  far  now  to  turn  back  and  so  she 
pressed  on  faster  than  before.  As  she  drew  nearer,  she 
could  hear  the  roar  of  the  deadly  muskets,  the  fatal  rifles, 
and  the  triumphant  shouts  of  the  victors.  But  from  which 
side  did  they  come  ?  Did  those  shouts  mean  the  defeat  of 
her  husband ;  or  did  they  mean  his  triumph  ?  This  was  the 
most  trying  moment  of  all — this  terrible  suspense.  If  it 
was  his  victory,  then  he  would  rejoice  to  have  her  share 
his  glory;  if  his  defeat,  then  he  would  need  her  to  soothe 
his  sufferings ;  so  on  she  pressed  to  share  Math  him  weal  or 
woe.  Crossing  the  Wilmington  road  a  few  hundred  yards 
below  the  bridge,  she  saw  a  clump  of  trees  under  which 
were  lying  perhaps  twenty  wounded  men.  What  was  this 
she  saw?  Her  blood  froze  in  her  veins;  her  heart  leapt  to 
her  mouth,  for  there  was  the  vision  realized.  The  scene 
before  her — she  know  it  as  well  as  if  she  had  seen  it  a 
thousand  times ;  the  spot,  the  trees,  the  position  of  the  men, 
the  groans  of  the  wounded,  and  her  sight  fell  upon  a  body 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  281 

lying  in  the  midst  of  the  group,  her  brain  became  dizzy, 
and  the  world  seemed  whirling  around  her  at  the  rate  of 
ten  thousand  miles  a  second — there  lay  a  body,  motionless, 
bloody,  ghostly,  wrapped  in  her  husband's  cloak.  Her 
whole  soul  became  centered  in  that  one  spot.  "How  I 
passed  from  my  saddle  to  this  place  I  never  knew,"  she 
said  afterwards ;  but  in  some  way  she  succeeded  in  reaching 
the  body,  and  mechanically  uncovered  the  head.  She  saw 
before  her  an  unrecognizable  face  crusted  with  dust  and 
blood  from  a  gash  across  the  temple.  What  a  relief  to  her" 
aching  heart  was  the  strange  voice  which  begged  her  for  a 
drink  of  water!  Her  senses  came  back  to  her  at  once  so 
she  was  able  to  minister  to  the  sufferer's  wants.  She  gave 
him  a  swallow  as  she  held  the  drooping  head  in  her  lap ;  and 
with  what  remained  of  the  water,  bathed  the  dirt  and  gore 
from  the  face.  From  the  ghastly  crust  came  the  pale  face 
of  one  of  her  neighbors,  Frank  Cogdell.  Under  the  gentle 
care  of  his  nurse,  he  revived  enough  to  speak,  and  when 
she  attempted  to  dress  the  wound  on  the  head,  he  managed 
to  gasp  out: 

"It's  not  that;  it's  the  hole  in  my  leg  that's  killing  me." 
Lifting  the  wounded  leg  from  the  puddle  of  blood  in 
which  it  lay  she  gently  cut  away  the  trousers  and  stock- 
ings and  found  a  shot  hole  through  the  fleshy  part  of  the 
limb.  What  nerve  it  must  have  taken  for  this  young  girl, 
unused  to  such  work,  alone,  without  help  or  advice,  to  go 
through  with  the  painful  ordeal.  But  she  was  of  the  stuff 
of  which  North  Carolina  moulds  her  heroes,  and  she  did 
not  flinch  from  her  duty.  Gathering  a  handful  of  heart 
leaves,  the  only  thing  in  sight  suitable  for  binding  the 
wound,  she  tied  these  tight  to  the  hole  and  the  bleeding 
stopped.  No  sooner  had  she  completed  this  pressing  duty, 
than  she  turned  to  others  of  the  unfortunate  men  who  lay 
in  pain  and  need  and,  as  she  says,  "dressed  the  wounds  of 
many  a  brave  fellow  who  did  good  fighting  long  after  that 
day."  During  all  this  time,  the  first  anxiety  for  her  hus- 
band relieved,  she  had  not  had  time  to  make  inquiries  after 


282  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

him,  but  with  true  heroism  devoted  herself  to  the  more 
pressing  duties  of  the  moment.  While  she  was  busily 
engaged  in  bringing  home  to  these  poor  fellows  the  bless- 
ings of  a  woman's  care,  General  Caswell  rode  up.  With 
great  surprise  at  seeing  Mrs.  Slocumb,  he  raised  his  hat  and 
was  about  to  address  her  with  a  compliment,  when  she 
interrupted  him  with  the  question : 

' '  Where  is  my  husband  ? ' ' 

"Where  he  ought  to  be,  madam;  in  pursuit  of  the 
enemy.  But  pray,  how  came  you  here?" 

"Oh,"  she  replied,  carelessly,  "I  thought  you  would 
need  nurses  as  well  as  soldiers.  See !  I  have  dressed  many 
of  these  good  fellows. "  Then  pointing  to  Frank  Cogdell, 
she  continued,  "Here  is  one  who  would  have  died  before 
any  of  you  men  could  have  helped  him."  As  she  spoke 
she  lifted  Frank's  head  in  her  arms  and  gave  him  a  drink 
of  water.  When  she  raised  her  head,  there  before  her  stood 
her  astonished  husband,  "as  bloody  as  a  butcher  and  as 
muddy  as  a  ditcher." 

"Why,  Mary,"  he  exclaimed,  "what  are  you  doing 
there,  hugging  Frank  Codgell,  the  greatest  reprobate  in 
the  army?" 

"I  don't  care,"  she  cried.  "Frank  is  a  brave  fellow,  a 
good  soldier  and  a  true  friend  of  congress. ' ' 

"True,  true,  every  word  of  it,"  exclaimed  Caswell,  who 
stood  by  much  amused  at  the  scene.  "You  are  right, 
madam,"  with  a  bow  that  would  have  shamed  Chesterfield 
himself. 

Mrs.  Slocumb  says  she  could  not  tell  her  husband  what 
had  brought  her  there.  "I  was  so  happy,"  she  says,  "and 
so  were  all.  It  was  a  glorious  victory;  I  came  just  at  the 
height  of  the  enjoyment.  I  knew  my  husband  was  sur- 
prised, but  I  could  see  that  he  was  not  displeased  with  me. ' ' 

It  was  of  course  long  into  the  night  before  the  excite- 
ment sudsided.  The  news  spread  like  wild  fire,  and  the 
Whigs  all  over  the  country  heard  it  with  rejoicing  and 
thanksgiving ;  and  everywhere  the  news  of  the  victory  was 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  283 

heard,  went  also  the  story  of  the  heroine,  her  brave  ride, 
her  heaven-sent  aid,  her  soothing  care  of  the  wounded  and 
suffering.  Many  a  soldier  breathed  a  prayer  of  thanks 
for  the  vision  which  came  to  her  and  for  her  courageous 
response.  But  the  prettiest  side  of  the  story  is  the  simple 
and  unaffected  way  in  which  she  looked  upon  her  act. 
Nothing  of  force  or  beauty  can  be  added  to  her  own  simple 
and  touching  words  about  her  return  home.  After  staying 
in  camp  long  enough  to  offer  intercession  in  behalf  of  the 
unfortunate  prisoners  and  to  receive  assurance  from 
Caswell  that  they  would  be  well  treated,  she  prepared  to 
start  home.  "In  the  middle  of  the  night,"  she  says  simply, 
without  thinking  apparently  of  her  course,  "I  again 
mounted  my  mare,  and  started  home.  Caswell  and  my  hus- 
band wanted  me  to  stay  till  next  morning  and  they  would 
send  a  party  with  me,  but  no !  I  wanted  to  see  my  child, 
and  told  them  they  could  send  no  party  that  could  keep  up 
with  me.  What  a  happy  ride  I  had  back !  and  with  what 
joy  did  I  embrace  my  child  as  he  ran  to  meet  me!" 

This  is  a  story  full  of  meaning  and  significance  to  him 
who  loves  his  state ;  who  admires  her  noble  women,  and 
brave  men;  who  glories  in  her  heroic  deeds  and  great 
achievements.  As  long  as  the  old  North  State  can  produce 
such  women  as  Mary  Slocumb,  she  need  entertain  no  fears 
as  to  what  her  men  will  be. — R.  D.  W.  CONNOR,  Wilming- 
ton, N.  C.,  in  American  Monthly  Magazine. 


284  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


THE  HOBSON  SISTERS. 

"Come  in  girls,  I'll  find  her.  She  just  knows  every- 
thing about  everybody's  grand  parents.  Oh,  Grand- 
mother!" called  Agnes,  as  she  ushered  the  bevy  of  girls 
about  her  own  age  into  the  cherry  sitting  room,  one  Octo- 
ber afternoon,  and  ran  to  tell  her  grandmother  of  her 
visitors. 

It  did  not  require  a  second  call  for  Mrs.  Martin  to 
respond,  and  in  her  quaint  way  she  cordially  greeted  her 
youthful  quests,  well  known  to  her  and  her  grand-daugh- 
ter's friends,  "Elizabeth,"  "Mary"  and  "Lucy  Kent." 

When  the  customary  salutations  and  courteous  inquiries 
had  been  exchanged,  Lucy  Kent,  anxious  to  make  known 
the  object  of  their  visit,  explained: 

"Agnes  said  you  knew  everything  about  everybody's 
ancestors,  and  our  teacher  told  us  today  that  we  must  bring 
in  tomorrow  our  lines  of  descent,  as  far  back  as  we  could 
trace ;  also  tell  any  family  tradition  or  any  incident  in  the 
lives  of  our  ancestors  in  connection  with  the  war  of  the 
Revolution,  especially,  she  said,  anything  the  women  did." 

' '  I  don 't  see  how  the  women  could  have  done  anything, 
when  it  was  all  fighting. ' '  added  Mary,  as  if  in  apology. 

And  I  said,  "Grandmother,  you  could  tell  us,  because 
I  had  heard  you  go  over  it  all,  way  back  to  Adam,"  said 
Agnes  reassuringly. 

"Not  quite  so  far  back,  my  dear,  yet  I  can  give  each 
of  you  some  interesting  accounts  of  your  ancestors,  but  the 
story  would  have  to  be  a  long  one  and  you  might  weary  of 
it, ' '  said  Mrs.  Martin  hesitatingly. 

"Oh  do,  Grandmother,"  pleaded  Agnes. 

"But  Wednesday  is  my  day  for  darning  the  stockings, 
and"— 

"Oh,  we'll  darn  the  stockings,  so  do  begin,"  exclaimed 
several  voices  in  chorus,  and  a  rush  was  made  for  the 
sewing  basket,  and  then  the  little  girls  sat  demurely,  wait- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  285 

ing  to  hear  the  promised  story,  industriously  plying  the 
needle,  and  filling  the  holes  with  the  thread. 

"This  portrait  that  you  see  here  on  the  wall,"  began 
Mrs.  Martin,  pointing  to  the  one  in  front  of  them,  "is  the 
grandmother  of  my  grandmother.  She  is  one  of  the  Hob- 
son  sisters  and  you,  Anges,  are  seventh  in  direct  line  of 
descent  from  her  through  the  Bacons  and  Carrs  and  Wares. 
It  is  a  singular  coincidence  that  you  and  your  little  friends 
here,  all  come  from  this  same  family  of  Hobson.  'Birds 
of  a  feather  flocking  together,'  "  chuckled  the  old  lady, 
evidently  pleased  to  see  the  friendship  existing  between  the 
children  in  this  generation,  who  were  representatives  of 
one  of  the  best  Georgia  families  and  of  the  staunchest  and 
truest  supporters  of  the  cause  of  American  Independence. 
"These  Hobsons, "  continued  she,  "were  daughters 
and  sons  of  Nicholas  Hobson,  of  Lunenburg  County,  Vir- 
ginia, son  of  Matthew  Hobson,  of  Henrico.  As  you  already 
know,  Georgia  was  largely  settled  by  colonists  from  Vir- 
ginia. It  is  not  surprising  to  find  the  younger  members  of 
the  Hobson  family  removing  later  to  Georgia,  for  young 
folks  are  always  looking  for  the  best  place  to  locate,  and 
this  is  what  the  husbands  and  wives  in  the  Hobson  family 
did,  moved  to  Georgia  and  located  at  Augusta. ' ' 

"But  you  were  telling  about  the  portrait,"  interposed 
Mary.    ' '  Is  she  Agnes  Hobson  ? ' ' 

"Yes,  Agnes  Hobson,  born  July  4th,  1740,  and  wife  of 
William  Bacon,  born  January  29,  1732,  who  was  a  Revolu- 
tionary soldier,  and  a  member  of  the  Provincial  Congress 
1775,  as  was  also  his  brother  John  Bacon.  Agnes  had 
sisters  Elizabeth,  Sarah,  Obedience,  Mary  and  Margaret, 
and  brothers  Matthew,  William,  Nicholas  and  John  Hob- 
son.  Ten  children  in  the  Hobson  family,  in  the  home  in 
Lunenburg  County,  Virginia.  My!  what  fine  men  and 
women,  with  the  love  of  country,  and  the  sacredness  of  the 
cause  of  freedom  instilled  in  their  hearts  from  infancy." 
"Well,  what  did  Agnes  Hobson  do?"  questioned  Mary. 


286  REVOLUTIONABY  READER 

' '  I  was  just  about  to  tell  you  Mary,  men  and  women  are 
great  and  are  heroic  when  they  can  rise  to  meet  the  occas- 
ion which  necessity  presents.  So  at  this  particular  crisis 
in  the  affairs  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  it  became 
necessary  to  convey  a  message  from  Colonel  Clark,  in  Geor- 
gia, to  General  Nathaniel  Greene,  who  was  then  in  South 
Carolina.  In  1781,  the  British  being  in  possession  of  Au- 
gusta, General  Greene  determined  to  march  into  South 
Carolina,  and  Colonel  Clark  and  McCall  proceeded  to 
co-operate  by  annoying  the  British  posts  in  Georgia.  Gen- 
eral Clark  determined  in  May  to  attack.  This  information 
must  be  conveyed  to  General  Greene  at  once.  As  the  enemy 's 
line  would  have  to  be  crossed,  it  would  not  be  possible  to 
send  the  despatch  by  a  man  with  the  hope  that  he  would 
ever  reach  General  Greene  alive.  He  would  not  only  be 
held  as  a  prisoner,  but  searched  and  probably  hung.  In 
those  days  petticoats  were  flags  of  truce.  So,  here  was  a 
woman's  opportunity.  But  what  woman  would?  In  those 
days  the  country's  affairs  were  freely  and  intelligently 
discussed  by  men  and  women,  and  there  were  no  braver 
women  than  the  Hobsons.  Nothing  daunted,  Agnes  volun- 
teered to  convey  the  despatch.  Her  brother-in-law, 
Nathaniel  Bacon,  had  gone  to  South  Carolina  to  assist 
Colonel  Pickens  who  was  maneuvering  between  Augusta 
and  Ninety  Six.  Nathaniel  was  a  Captain  in  Pickens' 
Brigade.  She  would  reach  him  and  through  him  convey 
this  message  to  General  Greene's  headquarters.  With  the 
papers  safely  folded  in  her  bosom  she  plunged  into  the 
swollen  current  of  the  Savannah  River,  and  borne  by  her 
trusty  horse,  reached  the  Carolina  shore  in  safety.  Reach- 
ing her  destination  and  fulfilling  her  mission,  she  recrossed 
the  enemy's  line,  performing  the  act  of  a  courier,  swim- 
ming on  horse  back  the  Savannah  River,  and  riding  many, 
many  miles  unattended,  because  a  woman's  service  was 
needed  at  this  crisis  in  the  war  for  American  Independ- 
ence." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  287 

' '  Did  you  say  one  of  these  Hobson  sisters  was  my  ances- 
tor, and  did  she  do  anything  heroic  ? ' '  asked  Mary  inspired 
by  this  recital. 

"Oh,  yes"  answered  Mrs.  Martin,  "This  was  Elizabeth, 
the  wife  of  Capt.  Sherwood  Bugg.  There  is  a  love  story 
there." 

"A  love  story"  inquired  Lucy  Kent,  "How  interesting 
it  grows !  Please  tell  us  this  one. ' ' 

Grandmother,  pleased  at  her  interested  audience,  con- 
tinued her  story  of  the  Hobson  sisters. 

"Elizabeth  Hobson,  wife  of  Capt.  Sherwood  Bugg, 
(Legionary  Corps,  Jackson  Legion)  came  with  her  husband 
and  her  brothers  John  and  Matthew  Hobsoii  to  Richmond 
County,  Georgia,  1765-67.  John  died  soon  after  his  arrival 
in  Georgia.  Matthew  married  Miss  Burke.  He  also  lived 
in  Augusta,  was  a  Revolutionary  soldier  and  an  ardent 
patriot.  It  was  at  his  house  that  the  Executive  Council 
met  after  the  capture  of  Savannah  by  the  British.  It  is 
said  that  General  Washington  was  the  guest  of  Matthew 
Hobson  during  his  stay  in  Augusta,  while  on  his  triumphant 
tour  through  Georgia  and  the  South." 

"Elizabeth  Hobson  was  no  less  a  heroine  than  was  her 
sister  Agnes,  nor  less  a  patriot  than  were  her  brothers 
Matthew,  William  and  Nicholas.  Her  house  on  her  planta- 
tion, near  Augusta,  Beech  Island,  she  converted  into  a 
refuge  and  hospital  for  the  patriots  and  Continental  Sol- 
diers, where  they  were  cared  for  and  nursed  back  to  health. 
Among  these  patriots  were  Colonels  Clark  and  McCall,  and 
Major  Carter,  who  in  spite  of  the  care  bestowed  upon  him 
died  there  from  his  wounds.  Another,  Colonel  John  Jones, 
of  Burke  County,  received  the  tenderest  treatment  at  the 
home  of  Mrs.  Bugg.  Colonel  Jones  had  received  eight 
sabre  cuts  on  the  head  and  was  desperately  wounded  at 
Earle  Fort,  on  the  Pacolet  River,  during  the  night  attack 
by  the  British  and  Tories.  During  his  illness  at  Beech 
Island,  his  brother  Abraham  Jones  and  sister  Sallie  Jones 
came  to  visit  him.  The  acquaintance  thus  brought  about 


288  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

between  the  Jones  and  Bugg  families,  culminated  later  in 
the  marriage  of  two  couples.  Sarah  Ann  Jones  married 
young  Shirwood  Bugg,  and  following  their  example  Abram 
Jones  married  Sally  Bugg.  From  these  descended  the 
Phinizys  and  Hamiltons  and  Jones  and  Lamars,  from 
whom  you,  Elizabeth  and  Mary  and  Lucy  Kent  are  de- 
scended. ' ' 

"You  said,  grandmother,  that  'Ned  Brace'  of  'The 
Georgia  Scenes, '  came  from  the  Hobson  sisters, ' '  reminded 
Agnes,  anxious  that  nothing  be  left  untold. 

"So  he  did;  'Ned  Brace,'  who  was  Edmund  Bacon,  was 
a  grandson  of  Obedience  Hobson,  who  married  John  Bacon. 
I  spoke  of  him  in  the  beginning  as  the  brother  of  William 
Bacon,  who  married  Agnes  Hobson,  and  there  is  a  sweet 
story  tradition  which  tells  of  Obedience.  On  one  occasion 
she  was  approached  by  a  British  officer,  who  had  reason  to 
believe  that  Obedience  knew  the  whereabouts  of  her  hus- 
band, John  Bacon.  'Do  you  know  where  he  is?'  sternly 
demanded  the  officer  as  he  leveled  his  gun  at  her  head. 
'Yes,'  replied  Obedience,  not  daring  to  tell  a  lie." 

"  'Where?'  thundered  the  officer.  Gaining  strength 
at  each  stage  of  their  interview,  Obedience  lifted  her  head 
and  replied  defiantly : 

"I  have  hid  him — in  my  heart  and  you  will  have  to 
kill  me  to  find  him. ' ' 

"Then,  there  was  another  sister,  Sarah,  who  married 
William  Fox.  The  old  people  used  to  speak  of  them  as 
'Sister  Bacon'  and  'Sister  Bugg'  and  'Sister  Fox.' 
Margaret  married  a  Telfair  and  Mary  Married  William 
Bilbo.  Nicholas  Hobson  married  Miss  de  Graffenried  and 
William, — well,  my  memory  fails  me  now, — but  I  suppose 
I  have  given  you  tradition  and  incident  sufficient  for  to- 
morrow's lesson,  so  far  as  you  are  personally  interested." 

"Oh,  yes,  and  thank  you  so  much"  exclaimed  each  of 
the  circle  of  friends,  and  with  affectionate  goodbyes  their 
pleasant  interview  ended. — SALLIE  MARSHALL  MARTIN 
HARRISON,  Oglethorpe  Chapter,  Columbus,  Ga. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  289 

WASHINGTON'S  MARCH  THROUGH  SOMERSET 
COUNTY,  NEW  JERSEY. 

ADELINE  W.  VOORHEES  STILLWELL. 

The  battle  of  Trenton  thoroughly  aroused  General 
Howe,  who  at  once  collected  7,000  men  at  Princeton. 
Washington  had  but  5,000  men.  On  January  3  the  battle 
of  Princeton  took  place  and  the  Americans  were  again 
victorious,  but  the  men  were  so  completely  exhausted  that 
Washington  was  forced  reluctantly  to  abandon  his  project 
of  capturing  the  stores  at  New  Brunswick  and  to  seek 
the  hill  country,  where  his  men  might  obtain  the  rest  and 
refreshment  they  so  much  needed. 

Reforming  his  columns,  the  General  passed  along  the 
King's  Highway  to  Van-Tillburgh 's  Inn,  at  Kingston, 
which  was  standing  not  many  years  ago.  Here,  turning  to 
the  left  on  the  narrow  Rocky  Hill  road,  he  marched  his 
way-worn  men  down  the  valley  of  the  Millstone. 

Arrayed  in  the  Continental  blue  and  buff  as  he  sat  on 
his  horse  with  all  that  martial  dignity  peculiar  to  himself, 
Washington  came  as  a  conqueror,  welcomed  by  the  enthusi- 
astic populace. 

Much  of  interest  appertaining  to  this  march  to  Morris- 
town  is  to  be  learned  from  the  manuscript  diary  of  Captain 
Thomas  Rodney  of  the  Dover  Light  Infantry,  which  is  pre- 
served by  his  descendants. 

When  the  van  of  the  American  army  reached  the  bridge 
which  spanned  the  Millstone  in  front  of  the  residence  of 
Christopher  Hoagland,  near  Griggstown,  the  British 
cavalry  appeared  in  considerable  force  on  the  opposite 
bank.  The  condition  of  Washington's  men  was  such  that 
he  desired  neither~to  pursue  nor  be  pursued,  so  he  ordered 
the  bridge  broken  up.  This  being  done  the  enemy  was 
forced  to  retire,  which  would  lead  one  to  suppose  that  the 
depth  of  the  river  was  much  greater  then  than  now.  Com- 
missaries were  sent  forward  to  notify  the  inhabitants  of 


290  EEVOLUTIONAEY  EEADER 

the  approach  of  the  troops  and  to  direct  that  food  be  pre- 
pared for  their  refreshment.  The  home  of  Abraham  Van 
Doren,  like  many  others,  was  the  scene  of  great  excitement 
and  special  activity  that  day.  I  quote  from  a  paper  read 
before  the  Somerset  County  Historical  Society  several  years 
ago  by  his  great-grandson,  Rev.  Wm.  H.  Van  Doren: 
"Abraham  Van  Doren  was  a  most  prosperous  and  promi- 
nent member  of  the  community.  He  owned  the  grist  mill 
which  did  a  large  business  between  Trenton  and  New 
Brunswick.  Besides  the  mill  he  owned  the  store  (ruins  of 
which  are  still  standing),  a  feed  mill,  a  saw  mill,  a  carding 
mill  and  power  loom,  a  cider  mill  and  distillery,  a  cooper- 
age, a  work  and  wagon  shop,  two  blacksmith  shops  and  a 
lath  mill,  besides  six  or  seven  hundred  acres  of  land.  The 
mills  and  store  houses  were  filled  with  flour,  grain,  whiskey 
and  lumber,  awaiting  a  favorable  opportunity  of  shipment 
to  New  York.  The  general  'killing,'  as  it  was  called,  had 
just  been  finished.  The  beeves  and  hogs  and  other  animals 
designed  for  the  next  year's  use  had  just  been  laid  down, 
so  that,  what  had  never  before  occurred  in  the  history  of 
the  settlement,  there  was  now  a  whole  year's  labor  stored 
up,  a  Providential  supply  for  a  great  necessity  which  110 
human  wisdom  could  have  foreseen.  Before  noon  the  whole 
hamlet  of  Millville,  as  Griggstown  was  then  called,  was 
ablaze  with  excitement  and  activity.  Soon  the  old  Dutch 
ovens  were  roaring  hot  and  bread  and  pone,  shortcake, 
mince  and  other  pies,  beef,  ham  and  pork,  sausage  and 
poultry,  were  cooking  and  roasting  to  feed  the  General  and 
his  staff.  Not  the  officers  alone,  but  the  whole  rank  and 
file  of  the  army  was  coming  and  right  royally  they 
feasted. ' '  There  are  many  interesting  traditions  which  are 
cherished  in  the  Van  Doren  family  relating  to  this  visit  of 
Washington  and  his  army. 

As  soon  as  the  troops  had  been  fed  and  had  an  hour  or 
two  of  rest,  Washington  found  that  Cornwallis,  enraged 
that  he  had  been  so  tricked  as  to  allow  his  foe  to  escape 
while  he  slept,  and  fearing  for  his  military  stores  at  New 


EEMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  291 

Brunswick,  had  put  his  whole  army  in  motion.  So  hur- 
riedly calling  his  men  to  "fall  in,"  Washington  hastened 
with  them  to  Somerset  Court  House,  now  Millstone.  It  was 
about  dusk  and  here  they  encamped  for  the  night.  Wash- 
ington and  some  of  his  staff  quartered  at  the  residence  of 
John  Van  Doren,  which  is  this  house.  Here  also  still  stands 
the  old  barn  where  the  General's  horse  was  stabled.  Until 
recently  the  house  was  occupied  by  a  great-grandson  of 
the  man  who  was  the  proud  host  for  one  night  of  the 
Father  of  our  Country.  This  family,  too,  have  many 
interesting  traditions  of  this  memorable  visit.  We  note  that 
two  men  by  the  name  of  Van  Doren,  within  twenty-four 
hours,  were  honored  by  being  permitted  to  entertain  the 
commander-in-chief  of  the  Continental  army. 

The  main  body  of  the  army  encamped  for  the  night  near 
the  present  Dutch  Church  parsonage,  in  close  proximity  to 
the  Court  House,  which  was  afterward  burned.  Early  the 
following  morning  the  column  was  again  pushing  north- 
ward, crossing  the  Raritan  at  Van  Veghten's  bridge,  now 
Finderne.  Not  far  from  this  bridge  stood  the  old  First 
Dutch  Church  of  the  Raritan  on  the  ground  donated  by 
Michael  Van  Veghten,  whose  tombstone  is  still  standing  in 
the  little  "God's  Acre,"  which  surrounded  the  edifice. 
This  building,  like  the  Court  House,  was  burned  with  all 
the  priceless  records  by  General  Simcoe's  men. 

Rodney  states  that  Washington  was  again  tempted  to 
march  to  New  Brunswick,  still  having  in  mind  the  rich 
stores  there  which  would  be  of  such  inestimable  value  to 
him.  However,  again  out  of  consideration  for  his  troops, 
he  abandoned  the  project.  After  crossing  at  Finderne  they 
marched  up  the  river  to  the  old  road  turning  west,  just 
north  of  Bernard  Meyers'  house  to  Tunison's  Tavern,  now 
the  "Somerset"  in  Somerville,  field  to  the  right,  passed  up 
Grove  Street  and  continued  over  the  hills  to  Pluckemin. 
The  sick  and  wounded  were  cared  for  in  the  village  while 
the  Lutheran  Church  was  used  as  a  temporary  prison  for 
the  captured  men. 


292  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

It  was  at  this  time  that  Leslie,  the  young  British  officer 
who  had  been  wounded  and  so  tenderly  cared  for  by  Dr. 
Rush  of  Philadelphia,  having  died,  was  laid  to  rest  with  full 
military  honors.  Many  of  us  have  seen  the  stone  in  the 
church  yard  at  Pluckemin  which  marks  his  resting  place. 

Sunday,  January  5,  1777,  was  a  great  day  for  Plucke- 
min. News  of  Washington 's  presence,  and  that  of  his  army, 
quickly  spread  throughout  the  surrounding  country,  and 
we  can  well  imagine  the  eagerness  with  which  the  people 
flocked  in  to  get  the  latest  news  of  the  war  and  perchance 
of  their  loved  ones.  The  Mathew  Lane  house  is  said  to  be 
the  house  where  the  General  was  quartered. 

Early  on  the  morning  of  January  6  Pluckemin  lost,  sud- 
denly as  it  had  gained,  the  distinction  of  being  the  head- 
quarters of  the  army. 

Rested  and  refreshed,  it  was  probably  the  most  peace- 
ful and  satisfactory  march  experienced  since  leaving  Hack- 
ensack  three  months  before  with  Cornwallis  at  their  heels. 

Secure  now  from  pursuit  the  little  army  in  good  heart 
travelled  slowly  along  the  narrow  road  called  the  Great 
Road  from  Inman's  Ferry,  New  Brunswick,  passing  Bed- 
minster  Church  to  Bedminster.  Some  authorities  say  they 
then  crossed  the  north  branch  of  the  Raritan  at  Van  der 
Veer's  Mills,  but  Mr.  Joshua  Doughty,  of  Somerville,  who 
seldom  makes  an  assertion  which  he  cannot  prove  by  the 
records,  tells  me  that  they  did  not  cross  the  river  at  that 
point,  but  filed  to  the  right,  going  through  "Muggy  Hol- 
low," the  road  which  Lord  Sterling  used  in  going  from 
his  place  to  the  sea  shore  at  Amboy;  then  passing  through 
Liberty  Corner  and  Basking  Ridge,  with  frequent  halts, 
they  climbed  the  Bernards  hills  to  Vealtown,  Bernards- 
ville,  and  on  to  New  Vernon,  and  just  as  the  sun  was  sink- 
ing in  the  west  reached  Morristown.  After  a  weary  pil- 
grimage they  were  for  the  time  being  safe  in  winter  quar- 
ters.— American  Monthly  Magazine. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  293 

HANNA  ARNETT. 
BY  MRS.  MARY  LOCKWOOD. 

The  days  were  dark  and  hopeless,  the  hearts  of  our 
forefathers  were  heavy  and  cast  down.  Deep,  dark  des- 
pondency had  settled  upon  them.  Defeat  after  defeat  had 
followed  our  army  until  it  was  demoralized,  and  despair 
had  taken  possession  of  them.  Lord  Cornwallis,  after  his 
victory  at  Fort  Lee,  had  marched  his  army  to  Elizabeth- 
town,  New  Jersey,  and  there  encamped.  This  was  in  that 
memorable  December,  1776.  The  Howe  brothers  had 
already  issued  their  celebrated  proclamation,  that  offered 
protection  to  all  that  would  seek  refuge  under  the  British 
flag  within  sixty  days  and  declare  themselves  British  sub- 
jects, and  take  an  oath  binding  themselves  to  not  take  up 
arms  against  the  mother  country  or  induce  others  to  do  so. 

In  one  of  the  many  spacious  homes  of  the  town,  there 
had  assembled  a  goodly  number  of  the  foremost  men  of  the 
time  to  discuss  the  feasibility  of  accepting  the  proffered 
proclamation.  We  are  much  inclined  to  the  belief  that  en- 
thusiasm, bravery,  indomitable  courage  and  patriotism 
were  attributes  that  took  possession  of  our  forefathers  and 
held  on  to  them  until  they  became  canonized  beatitudes, 
upon  which  the  sires  alone  had  a  corner,  but  we  find  on 
close  scrutiny  that  there  were  times  when  manly  hearts 
wavered,  and  to  courage  was  added  a  prefix,  and  this  was 
one  of  them. 

For  hours  the  council  went  on,  the  arguments  were 
sincere,  grave  but  faltering.  Some  thought  that  the  time 
had  fully  come  to  accept  the  clemency  offered — others  shook 
their  heads,  but  the  talk  went  on  until  every  soul  in  the 
room  had  become  of  one  mind,  courage,  bravery,  patriotism, 
hope,  honor,  all  were  swept  away  by  the  flood-tide  of  dis- 
aster. 

There  was  one  listener  from  whom  the  council  had 
not  heard.  In  an  adjoining  room  sat  Hannah  Arnett,  the 


294  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

wife  of  the  host.  She  had  listened  to  the  debate,  and  when 
the  final  vote  was  reached  she  could  no  longer  constrain 
herself.  She  sprang  to  her  feet  and,  throwing  open  the 
parlor  door,  in  her  majesty  confronted  that  group  of 
counsels. 

Picture  a  large  room  with  a  low  ceiling,  furnished  with 
the  heavily-carved  furniture  of  those  days,  dimly  lighted 
by  wax  candles,  and  a  fire  in  the  huge  fire-place.  Around  a 
table  sat  a  group  of  anxious  disheartened-looking  men.  Be- 
fore them  stood  the  fair  dame  in  the  antique  costume  of 
the  day.  Imagination  will  picture  her  stately  bearing  as 
she  entered  into  their  august  presence.  The  indignant 
scorn  upon  her  lips,  the  flash  of  her  blue  eyes,  her  com- 
manding figure  and  dignified  presence  brought  every  man 
to  his  feet. 

Consternation  and  amazement  for  the  moment  ruled 
supreme.  The  husband  advanced  toward  her,  shocked  and 
chagrined  that  his  wife  had  so  forgotten  herself;  that  she 
should  come  into  the  midst  of  a  meeting  where  politics  and 
the  questions  of  the  hour  were  being  discussed.  He  would 
shield  her  now.  The  reproof  he  would  give  later  on,  and 
so  he  was  quickly  at  her  side,  and  whispering,  said  to  her : 

"Hannah!  Hannah!  this  is  no  place  for  you.  We  do 
not  want  you  here  just  now. ' ' 

He  would  have  led  her  from  the  room. 

She  was  a  mild,  amiable  woman,  and  was  never  known 
to  do  aught  against  her  husband's  wishes,  but  if  she  saw 
him  now  she  made  no  sign,  but  turned  upon  the  astonished 
group : 

' '  Have  you  made  your  decision,  gentlemen  ? ' '  she  asked. 
' '  I  stand  before  you  to  know ;  have  you  chosen  the  part  of 
men  or  traitors  ? ' ' 

R  was  a  direct  question,  but  the  answer  was  full  of 
sophistry,  explanation,  and  excuse. 

' '  The  case  was  hopeless,  the  army  was  starving,  half 
clothed  and  undisciplined,  repulses  everywhere.  We  are 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  295 

ruined  and  can  stand  out  no  longer  against  England  and 
her  unlimited  resources. ' ' 

Mrs.  Arnett,  in  dignified  silence,  listened  until  they 
had  finished,  and  then  she  asked:  "But  what  if  we  should 
live  after  all?" 

"Hannah!  Hannah!"  said  her  husband  in  distress. 
"Do  you  not  see  that  these  are  no  questions  for  you?  We 
are  doing  what  is  best  for  you — for  all.  Women  have  no 
share  in  these  topics.  Go  to  your  spinning-wheel  and  leave 
us  to  settle  affairs.  My  good  little  wife,  you  are  making 
yourself  ridiculous.  Do  not  expose  yourself  in  this  way 
before  our  friends." 

Every  word  he  uttered  was  to  her  as  naught.  Not  a 
word  had  she  heard;  not  a  quiver  of  the  lip  or  tremor  of 
an  eyelash.  But  in  the  same  strangely  sweet  voice  she 
asked :  ' '  Can  you  tell  me  if,  after  all,  God  does  not  let  the 
right  perish,  if  America  should  win  in  the  conflict,  after 
you  had  thrown  yourself  on  British  clemency,  where  will 
you  be  then  ? ' ' 

' '  Then, ' '  said  one, ' '  we  should  have  to  leave  the  country. 
But  that  is  too  absurd  to  think  of  in  the  condition  our 
country  and  our  army  are. ' ' 

"Brother,"  said  Mrs.  Arnett,  "you  have  forgotten  one 
thing  which  England  has  not,  and  which  we  have — one 
thing  which  outweighs  all  England's  treasures,  and  that  is 
the  right.  God  is  on  our  side,  and  every  volly  of  our 
muskets  is  an  echo  of  His  voice.  We  are  poor,  and  weak, 
and  few,  but  God  is  fighting  for  us;  we  entered  into  this 
struggle  with  pure  hearts  and  prayerful  lips;  we  had 
counted  the  cost  and  were  willing  to  pay  the  price,  were 
it  in  our  own  heart 's  blood.  And  now  because  for  a  time  the 
day  is  going  against  us,  you  would  give  up  all,  and  sneak 
back  like  cravens  to  kiss  the  feet  that  have  trampled  upon 
us.  And  you  call  yourselves  men — the  sons  of  those  who 
gave  up  home  and  fortune  and  fatherland  to  make  for 
themselves  and  for  dear  liberty  a  resting  place  in  the 
wilderness?  Oh,  shame  upon  you  cowards !" 


296  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

"Gentlemen,"  said  Arnett,  with  an  anxious  look  on  his 
face.  "I  beg  you  to  excuse  this  most  unseemly  interrup- 
tion to  our  council.  My  wife  is  beside  herself,  I  think. 
You  all  know  her,  and  know  it  is  not  her  wont  to  meddle 
in  politics,  or  to  bawl  and  bluster.  Tomorrow  she  will  see  her 
folly,  but  now  I  pray  your  patience." 

Her  words  had  already  begun  to  leaven  the  little  man- 
hood remaining  in  their  bosoms,  but  not  a  word  was  spoken. 
She  had  turned  the  light  of  her  soul  upon  them,  and  in  the 
reflection  they  saw  photographed  their  own  littleness  of 
purpose  or  want  of  manly  resolve. 

She  still  talked  on :  "  Take  your  protection  if  you  will ; 
proclaim  yourselves  traitors  and  cowards,  false  to  your 
God !  but  horrible  will  be  the  judgment  you  will  bring  upon 
your  heads  and  the  heads  of  those  that  love  you.  I  tell  you 
that  England  will  never  conquer.  I  know  it,  and  feel  it  in 
every  fibre  of  my  heart.  Has  God  led  us  so  far  to  desert 
now?  Will  He  who  led  our  fathers  across  the  stormy, 
wintry  sea  forsake  their  children,  who  have  put  their  trust 
in  Him  ?  For  me,  I  stay  with  my  country,  and  my  hand 
shall  never  touch  the  hand  nor  my  heart  cleave  to  the  heart 
of  him  who  shames  her." 

While  these  words  were  falling  from  her  lips  she  stood 
before  them  like  a  tower  of  strength,  and,  turning  toward 
her  husband,  she  gave  him  a  withering  look  that  sent  a 
shock  through  every  fibre  of  his  body.  Continuing,  she 
said :  ' '  Isaac,  we  have  lived  together  for  twenty  years,  and 
through  all  of  them  I  have  been  to  you  a  true  and  loving 
wife ;  but  I  am  the  child  of  God  and  my  country,  and  if  you 
do  this  shameful  thing  I  will  never  own  you  again  as  my 
husband. ' ' 

"My  dear  wife!"  answered  Isaac,  excitedly,  "you  do 
not  know  what  you  are  saying.  Leave  me  for  such  a  thing 
as  this!" 

"For  such  a  thing  as  this?" 

"What  greater  cause  could  there  be?"  answered  the 
injured  wife.  ' '  I  married  a  good  man  and  true,  a  faithful 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  297 

friend,  and  it  needs  no  divorce  to  sever  me  from  a  traitor 
and  a  coward.  If  you  take  your  protection  you  lose  your 
wife,  and  I — I  lose  my  husband  and  my  home." 

The  scornful  words,  uttered  in  such  earnestness;  the 
pathetic  tones  in  which  these  last  words  were  spoken ;  the 
tears  that  dimmed  her  sad  blue  eyes,  appealed  to  the  heart 
of  every  man  before  her.  They  were  not  cowards  all 
through,  but  the  panic  sweeping  over  the  land  had  caught 
them  also. 

The  leaven  of  courage,  manliness  and  resolution  had 
begun  its  work.  Before  these  men  left  the  home  of  Hannah 
Arnett  that  night  every  man  had  resolved  to  spurn  the 
offered  amnesty,  and  had  taken  a  solemn  oath  to  stand  by 
their  country  through  good  days  and  bad,  until  freedom 
was  written  over  the  face  of  this  fair  land. 

There  are  names  of  men  who  fought  for  their  country 
and  won  distinction  afterward,  who  were  in  this  secret 
council,  but  the  name  of  Hannah  Arnett  figures  on  no  roll 
of  honor. 

Where  will  the  ' '  Sons  and  Daughters  of  the  Revolution ' ' 
place  Hannah  Arnett  ? — American  Monthly  Magazine. 


298  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


BUTTON  GWINNETT. 

Georgia  was  the  youngest  of  the  thirteen  original 
colonies.  At  the  Provincial  Congress  which  convened  in 
Savannah,  January  20,  1776,  there  were  elected  five  dele- 
gates to  the  Continental  Congress,  namely:  Dr.  Lyman 
Hall,  Button  Gwinnett,  George  Walton,  Archibald  Bulloch, 
and  John  Houston.  Of  these  Button  Gwinnett,  Dr.  Lyman 
Hall,  and  George  Walton  were  present  at  the  session  of  the 
National  Assembly,  which  convened  in  Philadelphia  on 
May  20th,  and  pledged  Georgia  with  the  United  Colonies 
on  July  4,  1776,  by  affixing  their  signatures  to  the  Declar- 
ation of  Independence. 

Button  Gwinnett,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  said 
to  have  been  born  in  England  about  1732.  He  was  a 
merchant  in  Bristol,  England,  from  which  place  he  emi- 
grated to  America  in  1770,  located  in  Charleston,  S.  C., 
and  in  1772  moved  to  Savannah,  Georgia,  at  which  time 
he  bought  a  large  part  of  St.  Catharine's  Island,  and  en- 
gaged in  farming.  He  died  tragically  on  May  27,  1777,  as 
a  result  of  a  pistol  shot  wound  in  a  duel  with  General 
Lachlan  Mclntosh,  near  Savannah  on  the  morning  of  May 
16,  1777. 

The  records  give  only  limited  information,  and  from 
careful  investigation,  at  times  it  appears  that  the  state- 
ments do  not  bear  out  the  correct  facts  with  regard  to  the 
biography  of  Button  Gwinnett.  In  Harper 's  ' '  Cyclopaedia 
of  United  States  History,"  Page  190,  Vol.  4,  the  state- 
ment is  made  that  Gwinnett  was  "cautious  and  doubtful, 
and  took  no  part  in  political  affairs  until  after  the  Revo- 
lutionary War  was  begun. ' '  Also  that  Mclntosh  challenged 
Gwinnett  for  a  duel.  Subsequent  acts  would  not  indicate 
that  the  first  statement  conforms  to  his  real  temperament, 
and  it  appears  from  the  best  obtainable  data  that  Gwinnett 
issued  the  challenge  to  Mclntosh.  It  is  true  that  having 
been  a  resident  of  America  only  a  few  years,  he  was  in 
some  doubt  at  first  as  to  whether  he  would  support  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  299 

colonies,  or  throw  his  influence  against  them,  but  he  was  a 
man  of  strong  convictions,  ambitious,  and  possessed  of 
great  force  of  character,  and  his  brief  political  career  was 
meteoric.  Unfortunately  his  strong  prejudices  and  desire 
for  political  preferment  led  to  the  tragedy  of  his  premature 
death. 

He  located  in  Georgia  in  1772,  was  elected  a  delegate  to 
the  Provincial  Congress,  which  convened  in  Savannah, 
January  20, 1776,  and  by  this  congress  was  made  a  delegate 
to  the  Continental  Congress,  which  convened  in  Philadel- 
phia, May  20,  1776.  July  4,  1776,  he  signed  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence.  He  became  a  member  of  the  Council 
of  Safety,  and  was  an  important  factor  in  framing  the 
first  Constitution  of  Georgia. 

Archibald  Bulloch,  who  was  the  first  President  and 
Commander-in-Chief  of  Georgia,  died  suddenly  in  Feb. 
1777.  Button  Gwinnett,  on  March  4th,  was  elected  to  fill 
this  vacancy  until  a  Governor  could  be  duly  elected.  Col. 
Lachlan  Mclntosh  had  been  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
Brigadier-General,  and  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  Militia 
of  Georgia.  Button  Gwinnett  was  envious  of  this  promo- 
tion of  General  Mclntosh,  and  through  jealousy  and 
revenge  he  so  interfered  with  the  military  affairs  as  to 
seriously  jeopardize  discipline,  and  create  insubordination 
towards  General  Mclntosh  as  Commander-in-Chief.  Per- 
sonally ambitious,  Gwinnett  planned  an  expedition  against 
Florida,  and  further  humiliated  and  insulted  General  Mc- 
Tntosh  by  ignoring  him  as  Banking  Military  Officer  of 
Georgia,  and  took  command  of  the  expedition  himself.  It 
is  a  matter  of  historical  record  that  the  expedition  was  a 
complete  failure. 

John  Adams  Treutland  was  elected  Governor  over 
Gwinnett.  Mclntosh  had  become  a  warm  supporter  of 
Treutland,  and  openly  denounced  Button  Gwinnett  as  a 
scoundrel.  As  a  result,  Gwinnett  challenged  Mclntosh  for 
a  duel,  which  was  promptly  accepted,  and  fought  with 
pistols  at  a  distance  of  eight  feet,  near  Savannah,  May  16, 


300  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

1777.  At  the  first  shot  both  were  wounded,  Gwinnett's  leg 
being  broken  and  he  fell.  It  is  said  he  asked  his  seconds 
ta  raise  him  that  he  might  shoot  again,  but  his  request  was 
denied,  and  he  was  taken  from  the  field.  The  weather  was 
very  warm,  and  septic  fever  soon  developed,  which  proved 
fatal  on  the  27th  of  May  following. 

Thus  ended  the  meteoric  life  of  Button  Gwinnett,  who, 
within  the  short  space  of  less  than  two  years,  sprang  from 
obscurity  into  prominence,  and  whose  life  was  brought  to 
a  sudden  and  tragic  end  at  the  hands  of  another,  and  whose 
grave  today  is  in  some  obscure  and  unknown  spot. 


"FORCED  BY  PIRATES  TO  WALK  THE  PLANK." 

Theodosia  Burr,  wife  of  Governor  Alston  of  South 
Carolina,  was  considered  a  beautiful  and  unusually  brave 
woman  of  Revolutionary  days.  It  is  of  her  that  this  legend 
is  told. 

After  her  father's  defeat  as  candidate  for  Governor  of 
New  York,  in  1804,  she  left  Charleston  by  water  route  to 
offer  her  sympathy  and  love  during  his  trying  ordeal.  The 
ship  of  which  she  was  a  passenger  was  captured  by  pirates 
with  murderous  intent.  Theodosia  Burr  was  forced  to 
walk  a  plank  backward  into  the  watery  deep,  her  eyes  were 
tightly  blind-folded  with  a  handkerchief  and  in  this  grue- 
some manner  she  met  her  death. 

Later  on  in  years  an  old  pirate  confessed  upon  his 
death  bed  that  this  beautiful  daughter  of  Aaron  Burr, 
whom  he  had  helped  put  to  death,  walked  the  plank  with 
the  greatest  composure ;  never  once  did  she  give  vent  to  her 
feelings.  This  was  the  news  conveyed  to  her  parents  after 
years  of  fruitless  search  for  their  beloved  daughter, 
Theodosia  Burr. — EDNA  ARNOLD  COPELAND,  Stephen  Heard 
Chapter,  Elberton,  Ga. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  301 


GEORGIA  WOMEN  OF  EARLY  DAYS. 

When  the  full  meed  of  recognition  to  which  she  is 
entitled,  is  given  by  the  historian  to  the  part  which  woman 
played  in  the  founding  and  evolution  of  the  colony  of  Geor- 
gia into  one  of  the  sovereign  states  of  the  American  union — 
when  her  part  in  the  bloody  tale  of  the  achievement  of 
American  Independence  is  fully  told  and  final  justice  done 
on  history's  page  to  the  hardships  which  she  suffered  in 
freedom's  name,  to  her  marvellous  courage,  to  her  forti- 
tude, to  her  patience,  to  her  self-denial  and  heroic  sacrifice, 
then  will  the  poet  find  new  themes  for  epic  song,  the  artist 
fresh  riches  for  his  easel,  the  romancer  a  new  field  for  his- 
torical fiction  and  every  patriotic  American  a  deeper  vener- 
ation for  the  flag  whose  primal  baptism  was  of  blood  so 
precious  and  heroic. 

As  a  curtain-raiser  to  the  story  of  the  heroines  of  the 
Revolution,  two  notable  women  of  colonial  days  appear 
and  claim  the  tribute  of  more  than  a  passing  mention  by 
reason  of  the  picturesque  place  which  they  occupy  in  the 
early  history  of  the  province,  and  because  of  the  unique 
and  momentous  service  which  they  rendered  to  the  colony 
of  Georgia. 

When  General  Oglethorpe,  dreaming  of  an  empire  of 
the  west,  attempted  to  secure  a  treaty  with  the  aborigines 
and  permission  to  plant  his  colony  on  the  virgin  soil  of 
Georgia,  it  was  a  woman 's  hand  that  unlocked  the  door  and 
bade  him  enter.  It  was  a  woman's  diplomatic  tact  and 
ascendant  influence  with  the  Indian  tribes  that  accom- 
plished the  cession  of  Georgia.  Mary  Musgrove,  an  Indian, 
the  wife  of  a  Carolina  planter,  negotiated  with  Tomi- 
chichi,  the  Yamacraw  Chief,  for  the  sale  of  the  terri- 
tory whose  boundaries  ran  from  the  Savannah  to  the  Alta- 
maha  and  westward  to  the  mythical  " South  Seas," — a 
body  of  lands  so  vast  that  the  Georgia  of  to-day  is  but  a 
minor  part  of  the  territory  originally  ceded. 


302  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Thus  we  find  that  the  first  real  estate  agent  that  ever 
closed  a  ' '  deal ' ' — the  biggest  that  ever  was  or  ever  will  be 
in  Georgia — was  a  woman,  and  the  first  Georgia  manufac- 
turer was  a  woman  as  well — Mary  Camuse,  the  wife  of 
Lewis  Camuse. 

From  the  business  tact,  enterprise  and  industry  of  Mary 
Camuse  resulted  the  first  recorded  exportation  to  England 
of  the  first  manufactured  article  which  left  our  shores, 
forty-five  pounds,  two  ounces  avoirdupois  weight  of  silk, 
cultivated  and  woven  by  her  hand. 

A  glance  at  the  minutes  of  the  trustees  of  the  colony 
reveals  this  quaint  and  interesting  entry : 

"August  7th,  1742.  Resolved,  That  it  is  recommended  to  the 
common  council,  to  give  Mrs.  Camuse  a  gratuity  for  every 
person  who  shall  be  certified  to  be  properly  instructed  by  her 
in  the  art  of  winding  silk." 

The  art  of  wearing  silk,  with  grace  and  elegance,  could, 
I  feel  assured,  be  taught  to  any  one  who  might  seek  to 
profit  thereby,  by  the  stately  matrons  whose  names  adorn 
the  roster  of  the  Atlanta  Chapter  of  the  Daughters  of  the 
American  Revolution,  but  the  art  of  winding  silk,  such  as 
the  trustees  encouraged  by  their  bounty,  is,  I  very  much 
fear,  at  this  time  in  Georgia  what  we  might  call  one  of  the 
"lost  arts." 

Passing  from  Mrs.  Musgrove  and  Mrs.  Camuse  to  the 
Georgia  women  of  the  Revolution,  I  beg  leave  to  state  that 
I  have  sought  in  this  paper  to  give  only  such  names  and 
incidents  as  are  authenticated  by  historical  reference  or  by 
well  established  tradition.  I  am  by  no  means  assured  that 
the  list  is  full, — indeed,  I  am  strongly  inclined  to  the 
opinion  that  it  is  largely  incomplete,  notwithstanding  the 
somewhat  exhaustive  research  which  has  been  made  in 
ancient  archives  and  time-worn  histories. 

It  is  generally  accepted  that  the  most  conspicuous 
figure  among  the  Georgia  women  of  the  Revolution  is  the 
famous  Amazon  of  Elbert  County,  the  redoubtable  Nancy 
Hart.  She  was  undoubtedly  the  foremost  fighter  from  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  303 

ranks  of  the  colonial  dames  North  or  South,  and  her  brave 
and  thrilling  exploits  were  indubitably  of  a  rank  and 
character  to  entitle  her  to  an  exalted  place  in  the  American 
temple  of  fame. 

The  portrait  of  Nancy  Hart  while  in  repose,  is  that  of  a 
formidable  warrior — when  in  action,  she  must  have  been  a 
female  Apollyon,  dire  and  terrible,  a  veritable  incarnation 
of  slaughter  and  threatenings.  Six  feet  in  height,  cross- 
eyed, ungainly  in  figure,  redheaded,  big  hands,  big  feet, 
broad  mouth,  massive  jaw,  sharp  of  tongue  and  rude  in 
speech,  she  was  a  picture  before  which  a  Redcoat,  a  Tory, 
or  a  bachelor,  well  might  quail.  "She  was  a  honey  of  a 
patriot  but  the  devil  of  a  wife,"  is  the  reading  of  the 
record — the  tribute  of  a  neighbor  who  lived  in  the  bloody 
times  which  made  her  known  to  fame. 

It  is  related  that  in  later  years,  a  resolution  was  in- 
troduced in  the  legislature  of  Georgia  providing  for  an 
equestrian  statue  of  General  Jackson — representing  his 
horse  in  the  act  of  plunging  forward,  the  warrior  pointing 
his  sword  with  martial  eagerness  towards  the  foe — to  be 
placed  in  the  capitol  of  Georgia.  A  patriotic  member  of  the 
body  arose  in  the  assembly  and  protested  that  he  would 
not  vote  for  the  resolution  unless  the  legislature  should 
likewise  authorize  a  painting  of  Nancy  Hart  fording  the 
Broad  River  with  a  tory  prisoner,  bare-headed  and  bare 
armed,  her  dress  tucked  up,  her  jaws  set,  her  big  hands 
suggestively  pointing  the  musket  at  her  cringing  captive. 

It  does  seem  a  matter  for  regret  that  some  such  recog- 
nition is  not  given  by  the  State  to  the  daring  and  valor  of 
this  Georgia  heroine.  The  history  of  no  other  nation  can 
boast  of  a  braver  or  more  invincible  woman,  and  it  should 
be  a  matter  of  state  pride  among  Georgians  to  honor  her 
memory  and  commemorate  with  painter's  brush,  or  sculp- 
tor's chisel,  her  splendid  and  heroic  achievements  in  the 
cause  of  American  Independence. 

The  fame  which  Nancy  Hart  achieved  as  a  fighting 
patriot  is  perhaps  equaled  by  Jane  Latouche  Cuyler  as  the 


304  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

political  heroine  in  Georgia,  of  the  Revolution.  This 
picturesque  and  remarkable  woman  was  the  widow  of  Tele- 
mon  Cuyler,  a  wealthy  mariner.  She  lived  at  the  corner 
of  Bull  and  Broughton  streets  in  Savannah.  Mrs.  Cuyler 
was  of  French  descent  and  inherited  the  fiery  and  mercurial 
temperament  of  her  Gallic  ancestors.  She  is  accorded  the 
distinction  of  being  the  first  patriot  at  Savannah  to  don  a 
liberty  cap,  which  she  persistently  wore,  to  the  grim  dis- 
pleasure, and  despite  the  intimidating  attitude,  of  the 
crown  governor,  Sir  James  Wright.  Political  meetings 
were  held  by  the  patriots  at  Mrs.  Cuyler 's  house  and  it  is 
said,  that  at  one  of  these  assemblies,  a  resolution  was  passed 
which  afterwards  formed  the  basis  of  the  action  of  the 
Provisional  Congress  in  declaring  Georgia's  adherence  to 
the  revolting  colonies  and  her  purpose  to  join  with  them 
in  armed  resistance  to  the  authority  of  the  English  crown. 

At  the  fall  of  Savannah,  she  was  taken  to  Charleston 
under  an  escort  of  Continental  troops  and  after  Charleston 
had  surrendered  to  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  the  Commissary 
General  of  Georgia  is  said  to  have  caused  her  to  be  trans- 
ported to  Philadelphia,  where  her  expenses  were  paid  by 
the  commonwealth  of  Georgia  in  recognition  of  her  valu- 
able services  to  the  patriots'  cause.  So  active  was  her 
participation  in  fanning  the  flame  of  revolution  and  in 
fomenting  armed  resistance  to  the  encroachments  of  the 
Crown  that  Sir  James  Wright  is  stated  to  have  offered  a 
reward  for  her  capture  and  delivery  to  the  British  authori- 
ties. She  died  in  New  Jersey  after  the  Revolution,  having 
lived,  however,  to  see  the  independence  of  the  colonies  for 
which  she  had  striven  with  such  fervor  and  eclat,  brought 
to  a  happy  and  successful  issue. 

After  the  fall  of  Savannah,  the  Continental  prisoners 
were  crowded  by  the  British  on  board  ships  lying  at  anchor 
in  the  Savannah  River.  These  ships  were  veritable  pest 
houses  and  many  of  the  prisoners  died  of  infection  and  for 
the  want  of  proper  sustenance.  Mrs.  Mordecai  Shefthall 
made  it  her  mission  to  go  out  in  boats  provisioned  and 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  305 

manned  by  her  negroes  to  make  the  rounds  of  these  floating 
prisons  and  administer  such  aid  and  bring  such  deli- 
cacies as  she  could  command  to  the  imprisoned  patriots. 
This  brave  and  noble  woman  endeared  herself  to  the  Con- 
tinental captives  and  in  consequence  of  these  missions  of 
mercy  and  her  brave  solicitude  for  the  unfortunate  pris- 
oners, she  acquired  the  beautiful  soubriquet  of  "the  Angel 
of  the  Prison  Ships." 

Yet  another  woman  who  administered  to  the  wants  and 
necessities  of  these  unfortunate  soldiers  was  Mrs.  Minis. 
General  Shefthall  himself  a  Captain,  records  two  impor- 
tant ministrations  which  she  rendered  to  his  succor  and 
comfort.  He  says:  "In  this  situation  I  remained  for  two 
days,  without  a  morsel  to  eat,  when  a  Hessian  officer  named 
Zaltman,  finding  that  I  could  talk  his  language,  removed 
me  to  his  room  and  sympathized  with  me  on  my  situation. 
He  permitted  me  to  send  to  Mrs.  Minis,  who  sent  me  some 
victuals. ' ' 

But  an  equally  important  service — more  of  a  luxury 
perhaps  than  a  necessity,  but  a  most  delightful  luxury  to  a 
gentleman — followed,  when  on  application  to  Col.  Innis, 
General  Shefthall,  records:  "I  got  his  leave  to  go  to  Mrs. 
Minis  for  a  shirt  she  had  taken  to  wash  for  me,  as  it  was 
the  only  one  I  had  left,  except  the  one  on  my  back,  and 
that  was  given  to  me  by  Captain  Kappel,  as  the  British 
soldiers  had  plundered  both  mine  and  my  son 's  clothes. ' ' 

In  the  time  allotted  for  this  paper,  I  have  not  the  op- 
portunity to  discuss  at  length  the  character  and  adventures 
of  Mrs.  Johnathan  Bryan  who,  amidst  constant  danger  from 
marauding  Tory  bands,  successfully  operated  and  managed 
her  husband's  plantation  while  he  was  fighting  for  the 
cause  of  liberty ;  nor  to  deal  with  the  exciting  and  romantio 
career  of  Sarah  Swinton  Mclntosh,  nor  to  depict  the  quaint 
personality  of  Winnifred  Mclntosh,  Spinster,  the  brave  and 
loyal  sister  of  the  dashing  ' '  Rory ' ' ;  nor  to  draw  the  picture 
of  Mrs.  John  Dooly,  the  tragic  murder  of  whose  husband 
by  the  Tories  is  said  to  have  fired  the  soul  of  Nancy  Hart 


306  EEVOLUTIONARY  READER 

with  the  fierce  flame  of  vengeance  against  the  brutal  Royal- 
ists, who  with  fire  and  sword  lay  waste  the  unprotected 
homes  of  the  patriots. 

I,  therefore,  close  this  crude  and  hasty  sketch  with  a 
romance  of  the  Revolution,  a  tale  which  must  appeal  to 
every  heart  because  of  its  human  interest,  its  bloody  setting, 
its  gratifying  sequel  and  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  one  of 
your  own  members  is  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  heroine  of 
this  pleasing  and  delightful  romance  of  love  and  war. 

My  story  is  a  note  from  the  life  of  Sarah  Ann  Jones  who 
was  sent  from  Burke  County,  Georgia,  to  Savannah  to  a 
boarding  school  for  young  ladies  kept  by  gentlewomen  in 
sympathy  with  the  Royalist  faction  of  the  colony.  So  far 
did  the  school  management  display  its  royalist  sentiment 
that  the  school  girls  were  coerced  into  knitting  socks  and 
making  shirts  for  the  enemy  during  the  hours  for  play  and 
recess,  and  were  sternly  instructed  to  be  true  and  loyal 
servants  to  the  King.  This  coercion  only  made  the  colonial 
girls  more  devoted  secretly  to  the  cause  of  liberty,  and 
when  Savannah  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  British,  the  times 
were  past  when  educational  advantages  could  be  con- 
sidered and  our  little  school  friend  was  sent  for,  and 
brought  home,  where  it  was  thought  she  could  find  a  safer 
asylum.  With  three  brothers  in  the  army,  and  all  her 
heart  with  them,  she  was  happy  to  be  at  home.  But  she 
was  destined  to  do  more  for  the  cause  of  liberty  than  fell 
to  the  lot  of  every  quiet  maiden  of  those  eventful  days.  She 
was  sent  for  not  a  great  while  after  her  return  home  to  go 
at  once  to  Beech  Island,  near  Augusta,  to  the  plantation 
of  Mrs.  Sherwood  Bugg  to  help  nurse  her  brother,  Captain 
John  Jones,  who  had  been  severely  wounded  and  who  had 
been  brought  there,  along  with  many  other  wounded  sol- 
diers, to  be  nursed  back  to  life  again  by  every  kindly 
ministration  known  to  the  helpful  women  of  these  stirring 
times. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  307 

And  so  she  went  and  helped  to  nurse  her  brother,  and 
there  the  long,  anxious  days  were  crowned  by  a  budding 
romance. 

Captain  Jones  was  able  again  to  enter  the  fight  for 
freedom,  and  then  it  was  that  his  lovely  young  sister, 
Sarah  Ann  Jones,  found  time  for  seeing  much  of  the 
youngest  son  of  her  hostess,  Sherwood  Bugg,  Jr.  Love 
soon  bound  the  young  soldier  with  silken  strands,  their 
troth  was  plighted  and  with  the  consent  of  both  families 
their  marriage  was  arranged  for.  Nothing  marred  their 
plans  and  the  young  couple  settled  after  their  marriage, 
on  land  in  Columbia  County,  Georgia,  granted  their  fami- 
lies for  services  rendered  during  the  struggle  of  1776  when 
young  girls  and  mere  boys  (too  young  for  regular  soldiers) 
found  an  opportunity  for  working  for  the  cause  of  their 
country  as  nobly  as  ever  did  the  soldiers  of  the  line. 

Today  in  a  little  home  of  one  of  your  members  are  to  be 
found  two  very  plain,  solid,  old  mahogany  tables  that  span 
these  years  reaching  back  to  the  Revolution,  that  belonged 
to  this  young  couple — a  fitting  table  on  which  to  pen  a 
love  letter  and  the  best  exponent  of  the  character  of  Revolu- 
tionary times,  serving  not  one,  but  five  generations,  and 
even  now  in  daily  use. 

This  little  romance  lends  additional  charm  to  the  beauty 
and  strength  of  these  old  tables,  and  today,  they  tell  us  of 
the  force  and  nobility  of  earlier  days  and  a  simpler  life. — 
JAMES  WADDY  AUSTIN.  Read  before  Atlanta  Chapter  by 
Mrs.  Joseph  Morgan. 


308  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


ROBERT    SALLETTE. 

In  studying  the  lives  of  noted  individuals,  we  find  the 
written  history  of  them  in  many  ways  so  very  different. 

Some  are  always  before  the  eyes  of  the  public.  They 
seem  to  know  just  how  to  arrange,  that  their  words  and 
deeds  are  known  and  read  of  all  men. 

Then  there  are  others,  perhaps  as  worthy  or  perchance 
even  more  so,  who  are  reticent  and  modest,  and  the  very 
simplicity  of  their  lives  causes  them  to  shrink  from  the 
lime-light,  the  glare  of  the  torch  and  the  noise  of  the 
trumpet  of  victory,  preferring  rather  the  inner-conscious- 
ness of  having  done  well  that  which  was  committed  unto 
them. 

Apart  from  either  of  these  classes,  we  find  a  few  who 
are  unconstrained,  who  take  destiny  into  their  own  hands, 
rough  hewing  as  they  will,  and  are  indifferent  alike  to 
either  public  censure  or  applause.  In  this  last  division, 
we  would  have  to  place  our  patriot,  Robert  Sallette. 

"Neither  history  nor  tradition  gives  us  the  place  of  his 
birth  or  the  date  of  his  death,  yet  it  is  known  that  he 
played  a  more  important  part  in  the  struggle  in  the  Colony 
than  any  one  man  who  had  no  trooops  at  his  command." 
Like  Melchizedek,  he  seems  to  have  had  no  beginning  or 
ending  or  length  of  days.  It  is  known  that  his  grave  lies 
in  the  noted  old  cemetery  at  Midway,  Georgia  along  with 
many  famous  revolutionary  heroes. 

Sallette 's  bravery  was  beyond  dispute,  even  to  reckless- 
ness. His  hatred  of  the  Tories  and  all  subjects  of  the  King 
was  so  bitter,  that  it  caused  a  price  to  be  set  upon  his  head. 
Most  of  us  are  familiar  with  the  traditions  which  the  his- 
torian, Harris,  tells  of  in  his  "Stories  of  Georgia,"  where 
"A  Tory  of  some  means  offered  a  reward  of  one  hundred 
guineas  to  any  one  who  would  bring  him  the  head  of 
Sallette. ' '  The  Tory  had  never  seen  Sallette,  but  his  alarm 
was  such,  that  he  offered  a  reward  large  enough  to  tempt 
some  one  to  assassinate  the  daring  partisan.  "When  Sallette 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  309 

heard  of  the  reward,  he  disguised  himself  as  a  farmer, 
placed  a  pumpkin  in  a  bag  and  took  it  to  the  home  of  the 
Tory.  He  was  invited  in  and  deposited  the  bag  on  the 
floor  beside  him,  the  pumpkin  striking  the  boards  with  a 
thump.  ''I  have  brought  you  the  head  of  Robert  Sallette," 
he  said.  "I  hear  that  you  have  offered  a  reward  of  one 
hundred  guineas  for  it." 

"Where  is  it,"  asked  the  Tory. 

' '  I  have  it  with  me, ' '  replied  Sallette,  shaking  the  loose 
end  of  the  bag.  "Count  me  out  the  money  and  take  the 
head." 

The  Tory  neither  doubting  nor  suspecting  counted  out 
the  money  and  placed  it  on  the  table. 

' '  Now  show  me  the  head, ' '  said  he. 

Sallette  removed  his  hat,  tapped  himself  on  the  fore- 
head and  said,  "Here  is  the  head  of  Robert  Sallette." 

The  Tory  was  so  frightened  that  he  jumped  from  the 
room  and  Sallette  pocketed  the  money  and  departed. 

An  old  inhabitant  of  Liberty  County  tells  that  once  two 
Tory  robbers  had  gone  to  some  worthy  man's  house  in  the 
lower  part  of  the  county  and  demanded  his  money.  When 
he  refused,  they  put  a  rope  .around  his  neck.  Bob  Sallette 
seems  to  have  appeared  on  the  scene  and  saw  what  was 
taking  place  across  the  field.  Sallette  rushed  up  on  horse 
back,  yelling  with  all  his  might,  ' '  Come  on,  boys,  here  they 
are."  The  Tories,  thinking  they  were  outnumbered  and 
would  be  captured,  ran  away.  Sallette  took  the  man  in 
trouble  on  horseback  with  him  and  they  made  their  escape. 

Sallette  was  not  wanting  in  humor,  as  we  see  in  the 
little  encounter  he  had  with  the  advance  guard  of  the 
British. 

Observing  that  a  dead  man,  who  was  a  remarkably  large 
man,  had  on  a  pair  of  good  boots,  Sallette  determined  to 
get  them.  While  pulling  them  off,  his  companion  called  for 
him  to  get  away  quickly,  or  he  would  be  killed.  "I  must 
have  the  boots,  I  need  them,  I  want  them  for  little  John 


310  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Way. ' '    This  was  fun  in  the  midst  of  tragedy,  as  Mr.  "Way 
was  a  remarkably  small  man. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  at  a  very  early  period,  the 
citizens  of  St.  John's  Parish  (now  the  County  of  Liberty) 
took  a  very  firm  stand  in  favor  of  independence.  The 
early,  open,  and  determined  resistance,  of  this  parish  did 
not  escape  the  notice  of  the  enemy,  and  accordingly  it  was 
made  to  feel  the  full  measure  of  royal  vengeance.  Added  to 
this,  Sallette  must  have  had  some  special  cause  for  the 
bitter  animosity  and  hatred  he  felt  for  all  Britishers.  It 
was  thought  (as  his  name  would  indicate)  that  he  descend- 
ed from  the  French  Acadians,  who  had  previously  suffered 
much,  and  often,  at  the  hands  of  the  Britishers,  hence  his 
motto,  which  was,  "never  forgive  a  Tory."  If  one  was 
ever  liberated  he  made  it  his  business  to  follow  him  and, 
if  possible,  take  his  life. 

Sallette  was  a  roving  character,  belonging  to  no  par- 
ticular command.  He  fought  valiantly  and  zealously,  but 
always  in  his  own  peculiar  way  and  style.  He  didn't  seem 
to  especially  value  his  own  life  and,  never,  the  life  of  his 
foe. 

Once  he  dressed  as  a  Britisher  and  dined  with  a  party 
of  them.  While  toasting  and  merry-making  he  suddenly 
drew  his  sword  and  killing  the  man  on  either  side  of  him, 
he  jumped  on  his  horse  and  rode  off  unhurt,  though  he 
stood  not  on  the  order  of  his  going. 

We  can  well  understand  that  with  such  a  daring  spirit 
and  cool  calculating  brain  he  was  greatly  feared  by  the 
Tories. 

Evidently  his  thinking  was  independent,  for  his  style  of 
warfare  and  sudden  actions  kept  the  enemy  uncertain 
where  he  would  next  appear.  Often  during  a  battle  he 
would  leave  his  command  and  go  to  the  rear  of  the  enemy 
and  kill  a  number  before  he  would  be  discovered. 

When  Major  Baker  defeated  a  body  of  Tories  at  the 
White  House  near  Sunbury,  among  the  enemies  slain  was 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  311 

Lieutenant  Grey,  whose  head  was  almost  severed  from  his 
body  by  a  stroke  of  Robert  Sallette's  sabre. 

Sallette,  the  scout,  was  a  personal  friend  of  Major 
Fraser  of  the  Revolutionary  War.  Tradition  has  it  that 
these  two  men  did  valiant  and  effective  service  in  running 
out  the  Tories. 

One  story  is,  that  these  two  met  a  couple  of  Tories  in 
the  road  at  the  ford  of  Taylor's  Creek  and  the  Tories  were 
never  afterwards  seen  or  heard  of,  which  was  characteristic 
of  his  manner  of  dealing  with  the  enemy. 

We  know  that  often  when  General  Marion  of  South 
Carolina  wanted  some  special  work  done  he  sent  to  Liberty 
County,  Georgia,  for  the  distinguished  and  intrepid  scout, 
Robert  Sallette. 

This  daring  scout  performed  many  deeds  to  free  this 
land  from  English  oppression  and  to  enable  us  to  sing : 

My  country  'tis  of  thee, 

Sweet  land  of  liberty 

*********  ***** 

Long  may  our  land  be  bright, 
With  freedom's  holy  light, 
Protect  us  by  thy  might, 
Great  God,  our  King. 


312  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


GENERAL  LAFAYETTE'S  VISIT  TO  MACON. 
The  Nation's  Guest — Arrangements  for  his  Reception. 

(From  the  Georgia  Messenger,  Macon,  Ga,  March  23,   1825.) 

A  signal  gun  will  be  fired  as  soon  as  the  General  and 
his  suite  arrive,  on  the  hill  at  the  old  fort.  The  ladies  and 
gentlemen  will  proceed  to  form  themselves  immediately  in 
two  lines  on  Bridge  Street,  near  the  ferry,  under  the 
direction  of  the  Town  Marshal,  and  A.  Mandell,  J.  S.  Chil- 
ders,  G.  B.  Wardlaw,  E.  McCall,  R.  McCall  and  Isaiah 
Chain,  Marshals  for  the  day;  the  arrangements  to  be  as 
follows:  First,  the  Commissioners  of  the  town  and  Com- 
mittee of  Arrangements  on  horseback;  second,  the  ladies; 
third,  the  citizens  generally.  He  will  be  received  by  the 
Commissioners  and  Committee  near  the  ferry,  where  he 
will  be  addressed  by  James  S.  Frierson,  Esq.,  in  behalf  of 
the  citizens. 

WEDNESDAY,  MARCH  30TH. — RECEPTION  OF  LAFAYETTE. 

At  12  o'clock  yesterday  a  signal  announced  his  ap- 
proach, when  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  proceeded  to  form 
lines  on  Bridge  Street  near  the  ferry.  Owing  to  the  rap- 
idity with  which  he  now  travels,  he  was  entirely  unattended 
by  any  military  escort.  The  only  persons  with  him  were  his 
son  and  secretary,  and  two  of  the  Governor's  aids,  Cols. 
Thaddeus  G.  Holt  and  Henry  G.  Lamar.  He  dismounted 
from  his  carriage  and  crossed  the  river,  where  he  was 
received  by  the  Committee  and  Commissioners.  On  ascend- 
ing the  bluff  he  was  welcomed  to  our  town  in  behalf  of  the 
citizens  by  James  S.  Frierson,  Esq.,  who  said : 

"General  Lafayette.  Sir:  I  am  deputed  by  the  citizens  of 
Macon  and  its  vicinity  to  welcome  you  to  this  place. 

"To  tell  you,  sir,  that  you  were  the  early,  steadfast  and  con- 
stant friend  of  this  republic  in  her  revolutionary  contest,  would 
be  only  to  say  what  had  been  acknowledged  by  the  past  and 
present  generation. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  313 

"But  that  glorious  struggle  in  which  your  destinies  were 
pledged  in  common  with  the  illustrious  characters  of  that  day, 
has  eventually  proved  that  a  system  of  government,  now  in  the 
history  of  the  world,  a  confederative  representative  democracy, 
is  the  best  guarantee  for  the  liberties  of  a  great  people,  is  now 
confirmed  by  the  experience  of  thirty-six  years. 

"The  first  State,  sir,  which  you  will  enter  after  leaving  this, 
and  those  you  are  now  to  visit  are  prominent  testimonials  of  this 
sublime  truth,  unknown  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle;  a  barren 
wilderness  where  the  foot  of  civilized  man  had  scarcely  trod,  in 
this  short  period  had  grown  in  numbers  nearly  equalling  the 
original  States,  entertaining  the  same  political  views,  the  same 
veneration  for  your  person  and  character  that  we  do;  you  will 
there  be  greeted  with  the  same  hospitality  that  you  have  met  here. 

"With  hearts  full  of  gratitude  for  your  past  service,  with 
the  earnest  and  intense  interest  for  your  future  welfare  and 
prosperity,  we  all  unite  in  wishing  that  the  evening  of  your  days 
may  be  spent  in  that  calm  tranquility  and  repose  of  which  you 
were  deprived  in  your  earlier  life." 

To  which  the  General  replied  in  substance: 

"That  he  was  thankful  for  the  manner  in  which  the  citizens 
of  Macon  were  placed  to  receive  him;  that  he  perfectly  accorded 
in  the  opinion  that  a  representative  Democracy  was  the  best  cal- 
culated to  secure  the  liberties  of  the  people,  and  requested  that 
the  people  of  Macon  would  rceeive  his  thanks  for  the  manner  in 
which  they  had  been  pleased  to  treat  him." 

A  procession  then  formed  and  he  was  conducted  to  his 
quarters  at  the  Macon  Hotel.  During  the  moving  of  the 
procession  a  national  salute  was  fired.  Soon  after  his 
arrival  he  was  waited  upon  by  the  ladies,  who  were  in- 
dividually introduced  to  him ;  after  which  every  citizen 
who  wished  was  introduced,  to  whom  General  Lafayette 
gave  a  cordial  grasp  of  the  hand. 

He  was  then  waited  on  at  his  quarters  by  the  brethren 
of  Macon  Lodge,  No.  34,  and  was  addressed  as  follows  by 
Worshipful  Ambrose  Baber,  Master  of  the  Lodge : 

"Brother  and  General  Lafayette:  In  our  humble  capacity  as 
brothers  of  the  mystic  union,  we  welcome  you  to  our  infant 


314  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

village.  No  triumphal  arch,  no  tinsel  show  of  earthly  grandeur 
greeted  your  entry.  We  offer  you  a  triumph  more  lasting  and 
noble — the  triumph  of  gratitude. 

"Admonished  by  that  resplendent  luminary  which  rules  and 
governs  the  day,  and  imparts  an  equal  lustre  on  all  mankind  twice 
in  every  year,  that  we  have  all  once  been  and  must  again  be  upon 
a  level,  we  have  ventured  to  hail  your  arrival  among  us,  and  to 
offer  you  a  welcome  in  unalloyed  gratitude,  the  spontaneous 
effusion  of  our  hearts. 

"Illustrious  benefactor  of  mankind.  What  a  train  of  associa- 
tions does  thy  eventful  life  excite.  Companion  and  associate  of 
our  immortal  Washington.  Thine  efficient  arm  hath  prostrated 
oppressive  tyranny — succored,  and  relieved  distressed  and  agon- 
ized humanity,  and  established  a  nation  in  the  full  enjoyment  of 
freedom.  The  glittering  offerings  of  princes  could  not  dissuade, 
nor  the  appalling  frowns  of  royalty  deter  you  from  a  life  of 
benevolent  usefulness.  The  assassins  of  sanguinary  demagogues 
nor  the  loathsome  cells  of  the  dungeon  mar  or  destroy  your  feel- 
ings of  philanthropy.  Unaltered  and  unchanged  didst  thou 
remain  amidst  the  calamities  and  vicissitudes  which  harrassed 
thine  own  distracted  country. 

"Behold  thy  compensation.  The  gratitude  of  ten  millions  of 
freemen,  the  applause  and  admiration  of  every  nation.  Even  the 
wilderness  smiles  with  joy  and  the  savage  is  gladdened  at  thy 
presence. 

"Amidst  this  jubilee  of  feeling,  permit  me  to  offer  you  again 
the  grateful  rejoicings  of  my  associates  and  brethren  of  the 
society  of  Free  Masons,  in  beholding  you  among  us.  Royal 
tyranny  may  condemn,  ignorance  may  reproach  and  blaspheme 
the  holy  mysteries  of  our  institution;  yet  with  Lafayette  for 
her  support  the  science  of  Massonry  will  continue  ti  illumine  and 
harmonize  mankind  to  endless  ages.  Gratitude  must  have  fled 
from  the  breast  of  man,  humanity  lose  its  refuge  on  earth,  and 
memory  lose  its  seat  ere  the  virtuous  deeds  of  the  generous, 
amiable,  distinguished  and  exemplary  Lafayette  shall  be  forgotten. 

To  which  the  General  replied  in  an  animated  manner: 

"The  very  grateful  reception  I  have  met  among  my  brethren 
demands  of  me  an  expression  of  my  most  sincere  and  affection- 
ate acknowledgements.  Permit  me  to  declare  to  you  particularly, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  315 

and  the  brethren  of  your  Lodge,  an  unfeigned  obligation  for 
the  very  flattering  regard  you  have  been  pleased  to  express  for 
me. 

"The  science  of  Free  Masonry,  to  which  I  have  for  many 
years  been  an  humble  votary,  is  wonderfully  calculated  to  alle- 
viate the  many  distresses  and  calamities  to  which  mankind  are 
exposed  in  their  variegated  and  manifold  duties  in  society,  and 
when  I  recur  to  those  scenes,  to  which  you  have  been  pleased  so 
delicately  to  allude,  I  am  constrained  to  acknowledge  how  much 
I  have  been  cheered,  sustained  and  animated  in  the  various  vicis- 
situdes of  my  life,  by  the  holy  precepts  and  examples  of  our 
institution. 

"That  you  and  your  Lodge  may  be  blessed  with  prosperity 
and  harmony,  that  the  rising  town  of  Macon  may  continue  in 
its  advancement,  that  Masonry  may  flourish,  and  the  citizens 
enjoy  all  the  social  and  intellectual  blessings  it  so  eminently 
inculcates,  I  pray  you,  sir,  with  the  rest  of  my  brethren  to  accept 
as  my  most  sincere  and  ardent  wish." 

He  remained  in  town  but  about  two  hours  and  a  half, 
during  which  time,  he  in  company  with  a  large  number  of 
our  citizens,  partook  of  an  excellent  dinner  prepared  by 
Mr.  Stovall.  After  dinner  the  following  toast  was  given  by 
Edward  D.  Tracy,  Esq. : 

"Our  illustrious  guest — the  friend  of  our  country,  of  liberty, 
and  of  man." 

To  which  the  General  replied,  and  gave : 

"The  town  of  Macon — may  its  prosperity  continue  to  be  one 
of  the  strongest  arguments  in  favor  of  republican  institutions." 

Very  soon  after  dinner  he  bade  an  affectionate  adieu  to 
the  gentlemen  and  ladies  around  him  and  resumed  his 
carriage,  at  which  time  another  national  salute  was  fired. 
He  was  accompanied  by  the  Committee,  Commissioners  of 
the  town  and  a  number  of  our  citizens,  on  horseback, 
several  miles  on  his  way.  It  is  understood  he  intended  to 
lodge  at  the  Agency;  making  the  whole  distance  traveled 
during  the  day  about  sixty  miles. 


316  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

SINGULAR  COINCIDENCE  OF  CIRCUMSTANCES  IN  THE  HISTORY 
OP  LAFAYETTE  AND  BOLIVAR. 

South  Carolina  was  the  first  place  in  the  United  States 
in  which  they  both  landed,  and  at  no  very  distant  spots 
the  one  near  Georgetown,  and  the  other  at  Charlestown. 
Lafayette,  a  Frenchman,  came  by  the  way  of  France. 
Both  have  most  materially  contributed  to  the  independence 
of  the  New  World — the  one  in  North,  the  other  in  South 
America;  and  what  is  most  singular,  at  the  very  period  in 
which  the  one  is  receiving  the  homage  of  national  gratitude 
in  the  former — the  other  has  succeeded  in  his  efforts  for 
the  cause  of  freedom  in  the  latter  place. 

Among  the  persons  who  received  Gen.  Lafayette  at  Col- 
umbia, was  Judge  Waites,  who  is  the  only  survivor  of  the 
party  that  first  received  him  at  landing  on  the  soil  of  South 
Carolina,  at  Gen.  Huger's  in  Georgetown. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  317 

YES.  TOMORROW'S  FLAG  DAY. 

(Tomorrow,  June  14,  is  Flag  Day  in  the  United  States.) 

When  Freedom,  from  her  mountain  height, 

Unfurled  her  standard  to  the  air, 
She  tore  the  azure  robe  of  night 

And  set  the  stars  of  glory  there. 
She  mingled  with  the  gorgeous  dyes 
The  milky  baldric  of  the  skies, 
And  striped  its  pure  celestial  white 
With  streaklings  of  the  morning  light; 
Then  from  his  mansion  in  the  sun 
She  called  her  eagle  to  bear  down, 
And  gave  into  his  mighty  hand 
The  symbol  of  her  chosen  land. 

Majestic  monarch  of  the  cloud, 

Who  rear'st  aloft  thy  regal  form 
To  hear  the  tempest  trumpings  loud 
And  see    the  lightning  lances  driven, 

When  strive  the  warriors  of  the  storm 
,And  rolls  the  thunder  drum  of  heaven ; 
Child  of  the  sun,  to  thee  'tis  given 

To  guard  the  banner  of  the  free, 
To  hover  in  the  sulphur  smoke, 
To  ward  away  the  battle  stroke, 
And  bid  its  blendings  shine  afar, 
Like  rainbows  on  the  cloud  of  war, 

The  harbingers  of  Victory. 

Flag  of  the  brave,  thy  folds  shall  fly, 
The  sigh  of  hope  and  triumph  high, 
When  speaks  the  signal  trumpet  tone, 
And  the  long  line  comes  gleaming  on. 
Ere  yet  the  life-blood,  warm  and  wet, 
Has  dimmed  the  glistening  bayonet, 
Each  soldier  eye  shall  brightly  turn 
To  where  thy  sky-born  glories  burn, 
And  as  his  springing  steps  advance, 
Catch  war  and  vengeance  from  the  glance ; 


318  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

And  when  the  cannon  mouthings  loud 
Heave  in  wild  wreaths  the  battle  shroud, 
And  gory  sabres  rise  and  fall, 

And  cowering  foes  shall  shrink  beneath 
Each  gallant  arm  that  strikes  Tjelow 

That  lovely  messenger  of  death. 

Flag  of  the  seas,  on  oceans  wave 
Thy  stars  shall  glitter  o'er  the  brave; 
When  death,  careering  in  the  gale, 
Sweeps  darkly  round  the  bellied  sail, 
And  frighted  waves  rush  wildly  back 
Before  the  broadside's  reeling  rack, 
Each  dying  wanderer  of  the  sea 
Shall  look  at  once  to  heaven  and  thee, 
And  smile  to  see  thy  splendors  fly 
Iii  triumph  o'er  his  closing  eye. 

Flag  of  the  free  heart's  hope  and  home, 
By  angel  hands  to  valor  given, 
The  stars  have  lit  the  welkin  dome, 

And  all  thy  hues  were  born  in  heaven. 
Forever  float  that  standard  sheet! 

Where  breathes  a  foe  but  falls  before  us, 
With  Freedom's  soil  beneath  our  feet, 

And  Freedom's  banner  streaming  o'er  us? 

— Drake. 


It   was  here   that   Betsy  Ross   designed   and   made   the 
first  American  flag-   the  original  Old  Glory. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  319 


FLAG  DAY. 

Hats  off!  This  is  The  Flag's  birthday.  The  banner  of 
blue,  crimson  and  white,  is  one  hundred  and  thirty-six 
years  old,  1913.  Honor  the  colors  today.  The  flag  repre- 
sents more  than  just  stars  and  stripes.  It  represents  the 
history  of  the  Great  Republic  from  its  cradle  to  this  very 
moment : 

"Sea  fights  and  land  fights,  grim  and  great, 
Fought  to  make  and  save  the  State; 
Weary  marches  and  sinking  ships, 
Cheers  of  victory  on  dying  lips. 

Sign  of  a  nation,  great  and  strong, 
To  ward  her  people  from  foreign  wrong. 
Pride  and  glory  and  honor  all 
Live  in  the  colors,  to  stand  or  fall." 

Throughout  the  country  the  D.  A.  R. 's  are  celebrating 
this  great  anniversary  of  our  flag.  Honor  the  flag.  It 
belongs  to  every  American  citizen,  whether  we  live  under 
Northern  or  Southern  skies,  whether  the  American  spirit  is 
enthroned  over  civilization  struggles  with  its  problems 
upon  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  or  turns  to  problems  as  grave 
on  this  side. 

And  we  are  conquering  the  world  under  the  emblem  of 
Old  Glory.  The  world  turns  to  us  as  the  maker  of  Peace, 
the  mightiest  since  civilization's  dawning,  for  genuine 
rule — those  ' '  common  people, ' '  of  whom  Lincoln  said,  ' '  The 
Lord  must  love  them,  he  made  so  many." 

The  first  flag  hoisted  on  American  soil  about  which  we 
have  any  authentic  record,  was  that  seen  by  the  earliest 
voyagers  to  our  coasts.  They  found  that  the  North  Ameri- 
can Indians  carried  a  pole  covered  with  wing  feathers  of 
the  eagle  as  a  standard. 

Columbus,  when  he  landed,  October  12th,  1492,  on  the 
island  of  San  Salvador,  unfurled  upon  the  shores  of  the 


320  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

new  world  the  first  European  banners.  The  son  of  Colum- 
bus records  that  his  father,  dressed  in  scarlet,  came  ashore 
with  the  royal  standard  of  Isabella  emblazoned  with  the 
arms  of  Castile  and  Leon.  He  planted  this  standard  to- 
gether with  its  companion,  a  white  flag  with  a  green  cross, 
on  this  small  island.  In  the  pictures  of  the  ships  of  the 
time  of  Columbus  these  flags  may  be  seen  streaming  from 
the  ship 's  mast. 

In  1499,  the  Eastern  coast  of  South  America  was  ex- 
plored by  the  Florentine,  Amerieus  Vespucius.  About  the 
same  time  the  Cabots  planted  the  banners  of  England  and 
of  St.  Mark  of  Venice  on  the  North  American  shores. 

The  Red  Cross  of  St.  George  was  first  raised  on  Ameri- 
can shores  at  Jamestown,  Virginia,  in  May  1607  and  when 
the  Pilgrims  landed  on  Plymouth  Rock  in  1620  there  floated 
from  the  mast  of  the  Mayflower  also  the  red  cross  of  St. 
George.  Our  Pacific  coast  had  been  visited  in  the  preceding 
century  by  Francis  Drake,  in  his  voyage  around  the  world. 
Into  the  New  York  Harbor  sailed  Hudson  with  the  Dutch 
flag,  a  tri-color,  orange,  white  and  blue.  This  banner,  with 
the  letters  W.  I.  C.,  floated  over  Manhattan  Island,  pro- 
claiming the  rights  of  the  Dutch  West  India  Company. 
About  the  same  time  the  Swedes  floated  their  royal  banner 
in  the  sunlight  on  the  banks  of  the  Delaware.  This  colony 
from  the  frozen  north  of  Europe  was  so  charmed  with  our 
country  that  to  Cape  Horn  they  gave  the  name  of  Paradise 
Point,  and  called  their  little  settlement  Christiana,  after 
their  far-away  Queen. 

During  the  period  of  our  history  known  as  Colonial  and 
Provincial,  the  English  flag  was  used  from  Maine  to  Geor- 
gia, with  various  devices  and  mottoes.  Some  flags  were  all 
red,  with  horizontal  stripes,  or  red  and  blue  stripes.  Others 
were  red,  blue,  white  or  yellow.  The  flags  so  frequently 
mentioned  in  the  newspapers  of  1774,  were  the  ordinary 
English  ensigns,  bearing  the  Union  Jack.  These  almost 
always  bore  a  patriotic  motto  like  "Liberty,"  "Liberty 
and  Property,"  and  "Liberty  and  Union." 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  321 

So  I  could  go  on  and  dwell  on  the  different  flags,  but  I 
must  hurry  to  our  own,  our  native  flag. 

It  is  not  generally  known,  and  comes  as  a  surprise  to 
many,  that  the  stars  and  stripes  is  one  of  the  oldest  National 
flags  in  existence,  France  being  next;  and  England's  pres- 
ent flag  was  not  adopted  until  1801. 

The  anniversary  of  the  adoption  of  the  Stars  and 
Stripes  by  the  Continental  Congress,  June  14th,  1777, 
should  be  observed  by  every  American  citizen. 

In  the  year  1775,  Congress  appointed  a  Committee,  of 
which  Franklin  was  chairman,  to  consider  and  devise  a 
national  flag.  This  resulted  in  the  adoption  of  the  ' '  King 's 
colors, ' '  so  called,  as  a  union  or  corner  stone,  while  thirteen 
stripes  of  alternate  red  and  white  stood  as  at  present. 
This  flag  was  publicly  accepted,  recognized  and  saluted  at 
Washington's  headquarters  in  Cambridge,  Mass.,  January 
2,  1776,  from  which  fact  it  was  often  called  the  "Cam- 
bridge Flag,"  though  sometimes  the  "Flag  of  the  Union." 

After  the  Declaration  of  Independence  this  flag  lost  its 
point,  as  nobody  except  the  Tories  wanted  to  see  "King's 
colors."  So  in  the  Spring  of  1777,  Congress  appointed 
another  committee  to  design  another  suitable  flag.  George 
Washington  and  Robert  Morris  were  members  of  the  com- 
mittee. So  Washington  and  Robert  Morris  called  upon 
Mrs.  Elizabeth  Ross,  239  Arch  Street,  Philadelphia,  and 
from  a  pencil  drawing  of  General  Washington 's,  Mrs.  Ross 
made  the  first  flag.  She  suggested  six  pointed  stars  instead 
of  five  as  Washington  suggested  and  sketched.  He  accepted 
her  suggestion,  and  so  the  flag  was  made. 

Most  interesting  is  the  fact  that  the  making  of  the 
American  flag  is  largely  woman 's  work.  That  the  manufac- 
ture of  flags  has  grown  to  be  a  large  industry  is  proven  by 
the  fact  that  every  year  enough  flags,  great  and  small,  are 
made  to  give  one  to  every  man,  woman  and  child  in  the 
United  States.  Betsy  Ross  made  flags  for  the  government 
for  many  years;  after  her  death,  in  1836,  her  daughter, 
Mrs.  Clarissa  Wilson,  succeeded  to  the  business.  Miss 


322  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Sarah  Wilson,  great  granddaughter  of  Betsey  Ross,  still 
makes  duplicates  of  the  original  flag. 

The  great  battle  ships  that  are  steaming  around  the 
world,  flying  our  flag  under  circumstances  that  have  made 
the  nation  assume  a  new  importance  in  the  eyes  of  millions 
who  never  before  knew  much  about  us,  have  the  proper  flag. 
It  would  never  do  for  the  American  Government  to  fly  an 
incorrect  American  Flag.  It  is  a  huge  task  to  replace  all 
the  banners  used.  These  are  the  facts,  that  keep  busy 
hands  at  work,  guiding  the  electrically  driven  sewing 
machines  that  take  3600  stitches  a  minute.  Even  though 
the  machine  that  cuts  the  stars  for  the  silk  and  wool  bunt- 
ing flags  can  create  three  thousand  an  hour,  its  operators 
have  plenty  to  do.  The  stripes  are  cut  from  great  rolls  of 
colored  bunting  or  silk,  sometimes  by  skilled  operatives, 
and  again  by  machinery.  The  unions  are  cut  in  the  same 
way.  The  stars  are  first  pinned  on  the  unions,  and  then 
sewed  by  machinery.  That  is,  so  far  as  the  bunting  flags 
are  concerned.  The  silk  flags  are  wholly  hand  work,  even 
to  the  cutting  out  of  the  stars.  The  latter  are  embroidered 
on  the  blue  field  and  then  all  the  extra  cloth  is  deftly 
scissored  away. 

The  major  number  of  small  flags  is  printed.  This  is 
accomplished  by  the  aid  of  the  engraver  and  presses  some- 
thing like  those  on  which  newspapers  are  printed.  Even 
in  this  mechanical  work,  women  are  found  to  be  more 
serviceable  than  men.  It  always  has  been  their  field,  and 
seems  likely  to  so  remain.  There  has  been  almost  as  much 
of  an  evolutionary  process  in  the  manufacture,  as  in  the 
arrangement  of  the  American  flag. 

On  the  same  day  that  Congress  adopted  the  stars  and 
stripes,  John  Paul  Jones  received  command  of  the  Ranger, 
in  Portsmouth.  He  immediately  displayed  the  new  flag 
at  the  main  top,  probably  being  the  first  person  to  hoist 
these  colors  over  a  United  States  warship.  Jones  is  said 
to  have  remarked,  pointing  to  the  flag,  "That  flag  and  I 
are  twins ;  we  cannot  part  in  life  or  in  death.  So  long  as 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  323 

we  will  float,  we  will  float  together;  if  we  must  sink,  we 
shall  go  down  as  one. ' ' 

The  first  recognition  of  our  flag  was  by  the  flag  of 
France.  The  first  display  over  military  forces  took  place 
on  August  2,  1777,  at  Fort  Stanwix,  afterward  Schuyler, 
New  York.  The  fort  was  besieged  by  the  British ;  its  garri- 
son had  no  colors,  so  they  manufactured  a  standard  of  the 
approved  pattern.  They  cut  up  their  shirts  as  white 
material ;  for  stars  and  stripes,  an  officer 's  coat  supplied  the 
blue ;  and  small  sections  of  red  flannel  undergarments  fur- 
nished the  third  color.  It  is  said  that  the  flag  thus  pieced 
together  was  greeted  with  great  enthusiasm  and  warmly 
defended. 

The  following  September  the  stars  and  stripes  were 
first  displayed  in  battle  at  Brandywine.  They  first  waved 
over  a  captured  port  at  Nassau  in  the  succeeding  January. 
It  was  first  borne  around  the  world  by  Capt.  John  Ken- 
drick,  of  the  Ship  Columbia,  sailing  from  Boston  in  1787. 
It  had  first  been  displayed  in  China,  three  years  before,  by 
Captain  John  Green,  of  the  Empress.  When  the  first  ship 
appeared  flying  the  Stars  and  Stripes,  the  new  flag  excited 
much  interest  and  curiosity  among  the  people  of  Canton. 
A  strange  new  ship  had  arrived  in  port,  they  said,  bearing 
a  flag  as  beautiful  as  a  flower,  and  everybody  wanted  to  see 
the  flower-flag  ship.  By  this  name  of  Flower-Flag  the 
Chinese  continued  for  many  years  to  speak  of  our  ensign, 
and  its  poetic  beauty  has  often  appealed  to  our  own  people. 
The  sobriquet  which  appeals  most  strongly  to  the  nation 
as  a  whole  seems  to  be  that  of  "Old  Glory."  Captain 
Stephen  Driver  was  the  first  man  to  christen  our  flag  ' '  Old 
Glory."  He  was  born  at  Salem,  Mass.,  March  17,  1803. 
Just  before  he  sailed  on  the  brig  Charles  Doggett,  in  the 
year  1831,  he  was  presented  with  a  large  American  flag. 
As  it  was  hoisted  he  called  it  "Old  Glory"  and  this  was 
the  name  he  evermore  used  for  it.  This  flag  was  always 
with  the  Captain  on  the  sea  and  when  he  retired,  he  carried 
it  home  with  him  to  Nashville,  Tenn.  His  fondness  for  his 


324  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

flag  was  widely  known,  as  also  his  being  a  Union  man. 
During  the  late  unpleasantness  his  neighbors  desired  to 
get  hold  of  this  particular  flag  but  they  searched  his  house 
and  all  in  vain.  The  Captain  had  made  a  comforter  out  of 
it,  having  quilted  the  Old  Glory  with  his  own  hands.  He 
made  his  comforter  his  bed  fellow.  When  peace  was  re- 
stored, he  took  the  flag  to  the  Capitol  Building  in  Nash- 
ville. As  he  saw  it  on  top  of  the  building  he  exclaimed, 
"Now  that  Old  Glory  is  up  there,  gentlemen,  I  am  ready 
to  die."  He  died  in  Nashville  in  1886. 

The  original  flag  made  by  Betsy  Ross  remained  un- 
changed until  1795.  At  this  time,  two  new  states  had  been 
added  to  the  Union,  Vermont  and  Kentucky,  and  it  became 
evident  some  recognition  of  these  States  should  appear  upon 
the  flag.  Accordingly  the  number  of  stars  was  changed 
from  thirteen  to  fifteen,  though  much  opposition  was  shown 
to  this  change. 

For  twenty-three  years  the  flag  of  thirteen  stripes  was 
the  national  standard.  Under  this  banner,  the  United  States 
fought  and  won  three  wars  to  maintain  her  existence.  They 
were  the  wars  with  France  in  1799,  with  the  Barbary 
States  in  1801,  and  with  England  in  1812.  This  was  the 
"Star  Spangled  Banner"  in  honor  of  which  Francis  Scott 
Key  composed  our  national  song.  A  large  national  flag 
is  kept  floating  over  the  grave  of  Francis  Scott  Key  and  is 
never  taken  down  except  to  be  replaced  by  a  new  one.  This 
was  the  flag  under  which  the  good  ship  Constitution  sailed. 

In  the  year  1818,  the  number  of  States  had  increased 
to  twenty,  and  five  were  in  no  way  represented  in  the  flag. 
Congress  finally  decided  to  have  thirteen  stripes,  and  a 
provision  that  for  every  State  added  to  the  Union  a  new 
star  should  appear  in  the  galaxy  upon  the  blue  field,  and 
that  this  star  should  appear  upon  the  Fourth  of  July 
next  following  the  admission  of  the  new  State.  By  this 
happy  arrangement,  the  flag  typifies  at  once  the  country 
as  it  was  when  first  it  became  independent  and  as  it  is  today. 
There  is  no  law  as  to  the  method  of  arrangement  for  the 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  325 

stars,  but  the  Army  and  Navy  regulated  this  to  suit  them- 
selves 

We  think  of  ourselves  as  a  new  country,  yet  oddly 
enough  our  flag  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  the  world  today. 
That  of  Denmark  is  the  oldest  European  standard,  dating 
back  to  1219.  Next  is  the  Swiss  flag,  which  was  adopted  in 
the  seventeenth  century. 

In  1911,  to  the  Army  of  the  United  States  there  were 
furnished  1207,  storm  and  recruiting  flags,  342  post  flags, 
31  garrison  flags;  the  year  previous,  1076  storm  and  355 
post  flags.  These  sewed  together  would  nearly,  if  not 
entirely,  reached  around  the  United  States.  Each  battle  ship 
of  the  American  Navy  is  entitled  to  250  flags  every  three 
years,  though  many  are  renewed  oftener  than  this.  The 
cost  of  the  flags  for  each  battle  ship  is  about  twenty-five 
hundred  dollars,  nothing  small  in  this  bill  of  Uncle  Sam's 
for  equipment,  especially  when  you  remember  he  has 
twenty-seven  first  and  second  class  battleships  in  commis- 
sion, to  say  nothing  of  the  cruisers,  torpedo  boats,  torpedo 
boat  destroyers,  submarine  monitors,  gun  boats,  supply 
ships,  training  and  receiving  ships,  about  seventy  in  all. 

For  the  naval  flags  the  United  States  uses  up  about 
forty-three  thousand  dollars  worth  of  material  every  year ; 
pays  seventeen  thousand  dollars  for  wages,  and  produces 
an  average  of  about  sixty  thousand  flags  of  four  hundred 
and  eight  different  patterns.  The  material  of  which  the  flag 
is  made  must  stand  severe  tests,  for  there  are  storms  to  be 
weathered  and  a  sixty  mile  gale  can  whip  average  cloth  to 
tatters.  A  strip  of  bunting  two  inches  wide  must  have  a 
strength  of  sixty-five  pounds  when  proved  on  the  testing 
machine.  Two  inches  of  filling  must  stand  forty-five 
pounds.  The  bunting  is  American  made  and  all  wool  and 
nineteen  inches  wide.  It  is  washed  for  twenty-four  hours 
in  soap  and  fresh  water  and  next  day  given  a  like  treat- 
ment with  salt  water.  Then  for  ten  days  it  is  exposed  to 
the  weather,  thirty  hours  of  sunshine  being  stipulated.  The 


326  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

largest  United  States  flag,  36  x  19,  costs  the  government 
only  forty  dollars. 

There  is  a  statute  law  which  prohibits  the  use  of  our 
flag  for  advertising  purposes  or  decorating. 

Where  better  can  you  realize  the  beauty  of  the 
American  flag,  and  that  which  it  represents,  than  when  you 
see  it  flying  over  school  houses  or  play  grounds?  The  re- 
spect paid  by  the  school  children  to  the  flag  by  rising  and 
standing  and  with  right  hand  raised  to  a  line  with  their 
forehead  while  they  pledge  allegiance  to  their  flag  is  most 
appropriate,  but  the  pledge  that  appeals  to  me  most  is  that 
for  the  children  of  the  primary  schools,  which  is,  "I  give 
my  head  and  my  heart  to  God  and  my  country,  one  lan- 
guage and  one  flag. ' ' 

When  you  see  the  hands  of  ten,  nay,  twenty,  nationali- 
ties raised,  while  foreign  tones  mingle  with  those  of  our 
children  expressing  allegiance  to  one  flag,  where  better 
can  you  realize  the  beauty  of  "Old  Glory?"  And  though 
your  word,  your  flag,  your  tiny  nosegay  may  fall  into  the 
hands  of  just  a 

"Little  dirty  fellow,  in  a  dirty  part  of  town, 
Where  the  windy  panes  are  sooty  and  the  roofs  are  tumble  down ; 
Where  the  snow  falls  back  in  winter,  and  the  melting,  sultry  heat, 
Comes  like  pestilence  in  the  summer  through  the  narrow  dirty 
street," 

you  are  giving  into  his  hands  the  flag  you  would  have  him 
love,  and  in  later  years  honor  and  defend. 

The  Sons  of  the  Revolution  print  these  regulations: 

"The  flag  should  not  be  hoisted  before  sunrise,  nor  allowed  to 
remain  up  after  sunset. 

"At  sunset  spectotors  should  stand  at  attention  and  uncover 
during  the  playing  of  'Star  Spangled  Banner.'  Military  men  are 
required  to  do  so  by  regulation. 

"When  the  national  colors  are  passing  on  parade,  or  in  review, 
the  spectator  should,  if  walking,  halt;  if  sitting,  arise  and  stand 
at  attention,  and  uncover. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  327 

"In  placing  the  flag  at  half  staff,  it  should  first  be  hoisted  to 
the  top  of  the  staff  and  then  lowered  to  position,  and  preliminary 
to  lowering  from  half  staff  it  should  be  first  raised  to  the  top." 

There  is  one  general  rule  for  the  care  of  the  flag  which 
should  always  be  remembered.  "Treat  the  flag  of  your 
country  with  respect — this  is  the  fundamental  idea.  What- 
ever is  disrespectful  is  forbidden  in  dealing  with  symbols 
of  national  existence.  Do  not  let  it  be  torn;  if  it  should 
become  snagged  or  torn  accidentally,  mend  it  at  once.  Do 
not  let  the  flag  be  used  in  any  way  dishonorable. ' ' 

I  once  heard  of  a  flag  used  to  cover  the  floor  of  a  stage 
when  an  officer  of  the  navy  present  took  up  the  flag,  saying : 
"I  will  never  allow  anyone  to  stand  on  the  flag  while  I 
am  present." 

The  national  flag  is  raised  on  school  buildings  on  all 
national  or  state  holidays  and  on  anniversaries  of  memor- 
able events  in  our  country's  history.  Most  all  schools  now 
know  the  Star  Spangled  Banner  and  when  it  is  brought 
forward  every  pupil  rises  and  gives  a  military  salute  and 
distinctly  repeats:  "I  pledge  allegiance  to  my  flag  and  to 
the  Republic  for  which  it  stands,  one  nation,  indivisible, 
with  liberty  and  justice  to  all." 

The  eye  of  the  home-comer  catches  sight  of  the  large 
American  flag  which  floats  from  a  steel  pole  300  feet  high 
at  Mt.  Claire,  New  Jersey,  before  even  he  sees  the  Statue  of 
Liberty. 

Here's  our  love  to  you,  flag  of  the  free  and  flag  of  the  tried  and 

true; 
Here's  our  love  to  your  streaming  stripes  and  your  stars  in  a 

field  of  blue; 
Native  or  foreign,  we're  children  all  of  the  land  over  which  you 

fly, 

And  native  or  foreign,  we  love  the  land  for  which  it  were  sweet 
to  die. 


328  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

On  June  14,  1777,  in  old  Independence  Hall,  Philadel- 
phia, Congress  adopted  the  following  resolution : 

Resolved,  That  the  flag  of  the  thirteen  United  States  be 
thirteen  stripes,  alternate  red  and  white;  that  the  union  be  thir- 
teen stars,  white  in  a  blue  field,  representing  a  new  constellation, 
the  stars  to  be  arranged  in  a  circle. 

It  was  thirty-seven  years  before  the  Song  to  Immortal- 
ity, the  name  of  our  Star  Spangled  Banner,  was  written. 


END  OF  THE  REVOLUTION. 
BY  REV.  THOMAS  B.  GREGORY. 

The  last  battle  of  the  Revolutionary  war  was  fought  at 
Blue  Lick,  Kentucky,  August  20,  1782. 

England  died  hard,  and  in  ways  that  were  far  from 
being  in  strict  keeping  with  international  law  tried  to  post- 
pone the  final  surrender  as  long  as  she  could.  It  was  in 
consequence  of  such  tactics  that  the  battle  of  Blue  Lick 
was  fought. 

On  the  16th  of  August,  1782,  a  force  of  several  hundred 
Canadians  and  "Wyandotte  Indians  laid  siege  to  Bryan's 
Station,  some  five  miles  from  the  present  city  of  Lexington, 
the  capital  of  the  famous  Blue  Grass  region. 

The  next  day  a  party  of  180  frontiersmen,  commanded 
by  Daniel  Boone,  John  Todd  and  Stephen  Trigg,  hastened 
to  the  rescue,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  they  were 
greatly  outnumbered  by  the  enemy. 

Upon  reaching  the  near  neighborhood  of  the  station 
a  council  of  war  was  held  to  determine  upon  the  line  of 
attack.  Boone 's  advice  was  to  march  silently  up  the  river 
and  fall  upon  the  rear  of  the  enemy,  while,  at  the  same 
time,  the  main  attack  should  be  delivered  in  front. 

Unfortunately,  this  sensible  advice  was  spoiled  by  the 
rash  action  of  a  major  named  McGray,  who  dashed  his 
horse  into  the  river,  shouting:  "Let  all  who  are  not  cow- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  329 

ards  follow  me. ' '  Of  course,  McGray  's  action  was  madness, 
but  it  was  a  madness  that  became  instantly  contagious, 
and  soon  most  of  the  men  were  fording  the  stream  hard 
after  the  rash  major. 

Crossing  without  molestation  they  reached  the  top  of  the 
ridge,  when  their  troubles  began  in  dead  earnest.  From 
front  and  flanks  they  received  a  deadly  fire  from  the  In- 
dians and  their  Canadian  allies.  They  had  been  ambushed, 
and  the  invisible  foe  shot  them  down  like  dogs. 

Outnumbered  three  to  one,  and  presently  quite  sur- 
rounded, they  fought  like  the  brave  men  they  were  until 
they  realized  that  to  remain  longer  was  to  be  annihilated, 
whereupon  they  broke  through  the  fiery  cordon  and  escaped 
as  best  they  could. 

Sixty-seven  Kentuckians  were  killed  outright  and  many 
of  the  wounded  were  afterward  massacred.  The  loss  of  the 
Canadians  and  Wyandottes  was  never  known,  as  they  car- 
ried away  their  killed  and  wounded. 

But  the  redmen  made  no  more  trouble  for  Kentucky. 
The  treaty  of  peace  deprived  them  of  their  British  backing, 
and  the  United  States  was  left  to  deal  with  them  after  its 
own  way.  The  memory  of  the  brave  fight  that  was  put  up 
by  the  handful  of  frontiersmen  lingered  with  them,  and, 
with  no  hope  of  help  from  England,  they  gave  the  Ken- 
tuckians a  grand  letting  alone. 

Such,  in  brief,  is  the  story  of  the  last  battle  of  the  war 
of  the  Revolution.  Beginning  away  up  in  Massachusetts, 
the  great  struggle  ended  at  Blue  Lick,  Kentucky,  a  region 
that  was  an  unknown  wilderness  when  the  struggle  began. 


330  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


Indian  Legends 


COUNTIES  OF  GEORGIA  BEARING  INDIAN 
NAMES. 

Seven  of  the  counties  in  Georgia  have  been  named  to 
perpetuate  the  memory  of  the  first  American,  the  Indian. 
Of  peculiar  interest  is  the  derivation  and  meaning  of  the 
names  of  these  counties. 

Catoosa:  Gatusi  in  Cherokee  language  and  means 
"mountain." 

Chattahoochee :  ( Creek :  Chatu  ' '  rock ' '  hutchas  ' '  mark, ' ' 
"design":  "pictured  rocks").  A  former  Lower  Creek 
town  on  the  upper  waters  of  Chattahoochee  River  to  which 
it  gave  its  name ;  seemingly  in  the  present  Harris  County, 
Georgia.  So  called  from  some  pictured  rocks  at  that  point. 

Chatooga:  (Also  Chatuga,  a  corruption  of  the  Cherokee 
Tsatugi,  possibly  meaning  ' ' he  drank  by  sips, "  or  "he  has 
crossed  the  stream  and  come  out  on  the  other  side,"  but 
more  likely  of  foreign  origin). 

Cherokee:  The  tribal  name  is  a  corruption  of  Tsalagi 
or  Tsaragi,  the  name  by  which  they  commonly  called  them- 
selves, and  which  may  be  derived  from  the  Choctaw  Chiluk- 
ki,  "cave  people,"  in  allusion  to  the  numerous  caves  in 
their  mountain  country. 

Coweta:  (Kawita).  The  name  of  the  leading  tribe 
among  the  Lower  Creeks,  whose  home  was  at  one  time  on 
the  Ocmulgee,  and  later  on  the  western  side  of  Chattahoo- 
chee below  the  falls.  According  to  one  old  Creek  tradition 
the  name  means  ' '  those  who  follow  us, ' '  and  was  given  them 
by  the  Kasihta  Indians,  another  Creek  tribe  who  tradition- 
ally marched  in  advance  when  the  Creeks  invaded  Alabama 
and  Georgia. 

Muscogee :  (Muscogee,  properly  Maskoki)  meaning  un- 
known. Its  derivation  has  been  attributed  to  an  Algon- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  331 

quian  terra  signifying  "swamp"  or  "open  marshy  land." 
Muscogee  is  the  name  by  which  the  dominant  tribe  of  the 
Creek  confedracy  knows  itself  and  is  known  to  other 
tribes. 

Oconee :  Was  the  name  of  a  tribe  which  anciently 
lived  on  Oconee  River,  but  subsequently  moved  first  to 
the  east  bank  of  the  Chattahoochee  and  later  to  Florida 
where  it  found  a  nucleus  of  the  people  later  known  as 
Seminoles.  Oconee,  their  chief  town,  was  situated,  accord- 
ing to  Hawkins,  about  four  miles  below  Milledgeville. 
Weekachumpa,  their  chief,  known  to  the  English  as  Long 
King,  and  one  of  his  warriors  were  among  the  Indians 
assembled  to  welcome  Oglethorpe  when  he  arrived  in  Geor- 
gia in  1732. — Compiled  by  MRS.  J.  S.  LOWREY. 


STORY  OF  EARLY  INDIAN  DAYS. 

A  pretty  story  of  early  times  in  America  is  that  of  the 
restoration  of  a  little  girl  to  her  parents  by  the  Indians.  It 
is  quoted  from  Currey  's  ' '  Story  of  Old  Fort  Dearborn, ' '  by 
the  New  York  Post.  The  child,  who  was  nine  years  old  at 
the  time  of  her  capture  in  western  Pennsylvania,  was  well 
treated,  came  to  regard  the  chief  and  his  mother  with  love 
and  reverence,  learned  their  language  and  customs,  and 
almost  forgot  her  own.  At  the  end  of  four  years,  this  chief 
was  invited  by  a  colonel  who  was  very  popular  with  the 
red  men  to  bring  the  girl  to  a  council  fire  at  Ft.  Niagara. 
He  accepted  the  invitation  upon  condition  that  there  should 
be  no  effort  to  reclaim  the  child.  When  the  boat  in  which 
the  chief  and  his  captive  had  crossed  the  Niagara  River 
touched  the  bank,  the  girl  sprang  into  the  arms  of  her  wait- 
ing mother.  The  chief  was  deeply  moved.  "She  shall  go," 
he  said.  "The  mother  must  have  her  child  again.  I  will 
go  back  alone."  In  the  words  of  her  daughter-in-law, 
who  wrote  of  this  period  many  years  afterward : 

"With  one  silent  gesture  of  farewell  he  turned  and 
stepped  on  board  the  boat.  No  arguments  or  entreaties 


332  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

could  induce  him  to  remain  at  the  council;  but  having 
gained  the  other  side  of  the  Niagara,  he  mounted  his  horse, 
and  with  his  young  men  was  soon  lost  in  the  depths  of  the 
sheltered  forests. ' ' 

The  girl  became  the  wife  of  John  Kinzie,  "Chicago's 
pioneer." 


CHIEF   VAN   HOUSE. 

At  the  foot  of  one  of  the  highest  peaks  of  Cohuttah 
Mountains  in  North  Georgia,  there  stood,  one  late  autumn 
day,  an  Indian  girl,  the  daughter  of  a  Cherokee  Chief,  and 
her  half-breed  lover. 

As  they  talked  she  told  him  how  the  young  men  of 
her  tribe  hated  him  and  how  they  taunted  her  about  her 
pale  faced  lover,  and  told  her  he  would  be  cruel  and  false 
to  her.  The  old  chiefs  had  told  her  of  the  great  white 
chief,  DeSoto,  who  had  built  the  fort  on  this  very  mountain 
where  they  stood,  when  he  rested  in  his  journey  from  the 
Indian  village,  Chiaha  (the  place  where  the  city  of  Rome, 
Ga.,  now  stands) .  They  told  her  how  cruelly  his  followers 
had  treated  her  people,  tearing  down  their  wigwams, 
desecrating  their  graves,  in  their  search  for  Tau-lan-neca 
(yellow  money)  and  they  warned  her  that  he  belonged  to 
that  same  cruel  race. 

He  answered  her,  his  heart  swelling  with  love  for  his 
father's  people,  that  they  were  not  false  and  cruel  but  kind 
and  good.  He  told  her  of  his  recent  trip  to  "Washington 
where  he  had  gone  as  interpreter  for  their  great  Chief, 
Ridge,  who  loved  the  white  people.  He  said  they  had  seen 
the  great  white  father  and  he  had  talked  kindly  to  them 
and  had  advised  them  to  sell  their  lands  to  the  white  peo- 
ple who  would  pay  them  well  for  it  and  would  give  them 
lands  just  as  beautiful  in  the  far  west,  which  would  be 
theirs  as  long  as  ' '  grass  grew  and  water  ran. ' ' 

He  told  her  that  if  her  people  should  be  guided  by 
Chief  Ridge,  and  go  to  this  far  away  land,  he,  too,  would 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  333 

go  with  them  and  try  to  make  her  happy  among  her  own 
people.  If  they  did  not  go  he  would  stay  among  them  and 
build  her  a  house  like  the  white  people  lived  in,  a  house 
good  and  strong  that  would  last  as  long  as  their  love,  which 
would  be  forever.  (It  seems  a  prophecy  for  it  is  still 
standing). 

He  kept  his  promise  to  her  and  the  house  he  dreamed 
of  was  built.  What  a  marvelous  thing  it  was  to  those 
savage  people  to  watch  the  building  of  this  house,  with  its 
carved  mantels  that  reach  to  the  ceiling,  and  the  wonderful 
spiral  stairway  that  excites  the  admiration  of  the  skilled 
workmen  of  today  and  the  hinges  of  the  doors  of  beaten 
brass. 

This  palefaeed  lover  little  dreamed  of  what  the  future 
held  in  store,  that  he  (David  Vann)  should  become  a  chief 
of  his  Nation  and  go  again  to  Washington  with  Chief  Ridge 
and  bring  back  to  their  tribe  the  purchase  money  for  their 
lands,  how  dissensions  had  arisen  among  them  in  regard 
to  the  division  of  the  money,  how  he  buried  the  money 
near  his  home  and  how  the  wife  that  loved  him  begged  him 
not  to  tell  her  where  he  buried  it  for  fear  the  Indians  would 
come  and  torture  her  and  make  her  tell  where  it  was  buried. 

Little  did  he  dream  that  he  and  Chief  Ridge  would  be 
basely  murdered  by  the  Indians. 

This  house  has  never  been  known  by  any  other  name  but 
the  Chief  Van  house.  It  is  impossible  to  find  out  the  exact 
time  it  was  built,  as  there  were  no  white  people  living  here 
at  that  time.  White,  in  his  Georgia  Statistics,  says  that 
when  the  Moravian  Mission  was  started  in  Spring  Place 
that  Chief  Van  gave  them  the  land  for  their  buildings  near 
his  house  and  sent  his  children  to  their  school.  That  was 
in  1802,  so  the  house  had  been  built  before  that  date. 

Judge  George  Glenn  in  a  published  article  has  told  of 
Chief  Van's  later  life,  his  marriage  to  an  Indian  princess, 
his  visits  to  Washington,  his  receiving  and  burying  the 
gold,  and  his  murder  by  the  Indians,  all  of  which  is 
authentic. 


334  REVOLUTIONABY  READER 

The  material  for  the  house  was  said  to  have  been  car- 
ried on  the  backs  of  Indian  ponies  from  Savannah,  Ga., 
but  other  accounts  say  that  Chief  Van  taught  the  Indians 
to  make  and  burn  the  brick  there. 

Thus  ends  the  romance,  mingled  truth,  and  tradition, 
but  the  house  in  fairly  good  repair  is  still  standing  in 
Spring  Place,  Ga.,  today.  This  little  town  was  the  only 
place  of  any  size  at  that  time.  In  the  jail  at  this  place 
John  Howard  Payne  was  imprisoned,  accused  of  being  a 
spy.  The  jail  is  still  standing. — MRS.  WARREN  DAVIS,  His- 
torian, John  Milledge  Chapter,  D.  A.  R.,  Dalton,  Ga. 


INDIAN   TALE. 

"Grandfather,  tell  me  about  the  Indians,"  said  little 
Annie  Daniel,  as  she  climbed  upon  the  arm  of  a  large 
rocking  chair  in  which  Mr.  Abel  Daniel  was  sitting,  dream- 
ing of  the  past  with  its  many  varied  experiences.  The  per- 
son thus  addressed  had  even  now  reached  his  fourscore 
years  and  ten,  yet  his  mind  was  keenly  alert,  his  carriage 
erect  and  his  immaculate  dress  revaled  the  "Gentlemen 
of  the  old  school."  "Washington  County,  Georgia,  was 
proud  to  claim  so  distinguished  a  son,  so  valiant  a  hero  and 
such  a  cultured  gentleman.  Capt.  Daniel  had  survived 
three  noted  wars;  the  "War  of  1812,"  the  Indian  and  the 
Mexican,  in  all  of  which  he  had  been  a  true  soldier  and 
had  won  honor  for  his  home  and  native  state.  His  gallant 
service  in  the  wars  with  the  British  and  the  Mexicans 
interested  the  grown  people.  How  he  helped  General 
Gaines  and  his  men  capture  the  little  village  in  Clay 
County  on  the  banks  of  the  Chattahoochee,  which  is  now 
called  Fort  Gaines  and  drive  the  Indians  back  into  Florida, 
always  delighted  the  young  boys  and  his  lullabies  sung  in 
the  Indian  language  pleased  little  Annie,  but  tonight  she 
begged  for  a  real  Indian  story. 

"Well,  dear,  I  shall  tell  you  of  one  which  relates  to  my 
own  life  and  is  really  a  great  part  of  it, ' '  said  grandfather. 


335 

"After  helping  to  expel  the  Indians  from  our  borders,  I 
decided  to  go  live  with  them  for  a  time  in  order  to  learn 
their  crafts  and  become  better  acquainted  with  a  people 
whom  I  believed  to  be  honest  and  loyal." 

''Having  crossed  the  border  and  tied  my  handkerchief 
to  a  leafy  branch  and  waived  it  aloft  as  a  flag  of  truce, 
they  quickly  responded  and  gave  me  a  most  cordial  wel- 
come. During  the  seven  years  of  my  stay  with  them,  I  was 
known  as  the  'White  Man'  arid  treated  as  some  superior 
being.  The  best  of  all  they  possessed  was  at  my  command 
and  they  counted  nothing  too  dear  that  would  add  to  my 
pleasure.  I  was  made  a  sharer  in  all  their  hunting  and 
fishing  sports,  having  been  presented  with  one  of  their 
very  best  ponies. 

' '  All  went  well  until  one  day  I  discovered  that  the  Chief 
was  plotting  a  marriage  between  me  and  his  beautiful 
daughter.  As  a  marriage  dowry  he  would  present  us  with 
several  barrels  of  specie,  thus  showing  in  what  esteem  he 
held  me.  I  could  never  think  of  marrying  this  Indian 
maiden  so  I  at  once  began  to  plan  my  escape.  The  next 
day  I  rode  my  pony  as  far  as  possible,  taking  my  gun  along 
as  a  pretense  of  hunting,  but  returned  the  following  day 
with  my  game.  After  letting  my  pony  rest  a  day  I  started 
out  a  second  time  to  test  her  strength  still  further.  This 
time  I  stayed  two  days  and  two  nights  and  decided  my  pony 
was  equal  to  any  undertaking.  After  a  second  rest  we 
started  out  the  third  time  and  made  a  safe  flight  across  the 
line  to  my  own  people. 

"Before  reaching  the  old  homestead  a  neighbor  had  in- 
formed me  of  my  father's  death  and  my  mother's  total 
blindness.  The  dear  old  soul  was  seated  on  the  porch  as  I 
rode  up ;  near  her  was  a  water  bucket  over  which  was  hang- 
ing a  long  handled  gourd.  Just  as  her  feeble  hands 
reached  out  for  the  gourd,  I  handed  it  to  her,  saying: 
'Here  it  is,  mother.'  She  recognized  my  voice  as  that  of 
her  baby  boy  and  fainted  away.  From  that  day  I  never 
left  my  aged  mother,  but  tried  to  make  amends  for  the  sor- 


336  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

row  my  wanderings  must  have  caused,  by  attending  to  her 
every  want  and  making  her  last  days  as  comfortable,  happy 
and  free  from  care  as  ever  a  loving  child  could. 

''My  Indian  pony  was  treasured  as  a  relic  of  the  years 
spent  with  the  Indians  and  my  fortunate  escape  from  the 
hand  of  his  daughter. 

"But  my  little  girl  is  getting  sleepy,  so  kiss  grandfather 
good  night,  and  he'll  tell  you  more  another  time." — MRS. 
ANNIE  (DANIEL)  CLIFTON,  Stone  Castle  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


WILLIAM  WHITE  AND  DANIEL  BOONE. 

In  1750,  William  White  and  Daniel  Boone  settled  at 
what  is  now  known  as  Bull  Bradley  Springs  in  Tennessee. 
The  Indian  trail  from  the  Hiwassee  town  Northward,  pass- 
ed near  this  home. 

One  evening,  two  of  the  boys,  aged  ten  and  twelve, 
went  out  into  the  forest  to  cut  and  prepare  wood  for  the 
night.  When  darkness  came  on  and  the  boys  did  not 
return,  a  search  was  made  and  their  axe  was  found  leaning 
against  a  small  hickory  tree  which  the  boys  must  have  been 
cutting  down  when  they  stopped  their  work.  Signs  of  In- 
dians were  discovered.  These  were  followed  next  morning 
and  were  found  to  lead  into  the  Indian  trail.  There 
seemed  to  have  been  a  large  party  of  the  Indians  going 
Northward.  The  pursuers  failed  to  overtake  the  Indians 
and  despite  all  their  efforts  were  unable  to  rescue  the  boys. 

Years  afterward  an  officer  in  Wisconsin  had  published, 
for  the  benefit  of  any  relatives  of  the  parties  concerned, 
that  two  white  men,  past  middle  age,  had  been  found  with 
one  of  the  Northwest  tribes.  These  men  had  forgotten  all 
knowledge  of  the  English  language.  They  remembered  that 
they  had  been  captured  by  Indians  while  engaged  in  cutting 
wood  and  that  their  captors  had  brought  them  many  miles, 
but  in  what  direction  they  were  uncertain. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  337 

This  description,  though  meager,  made  all  certain  that 
these  men  were  no  others  than  the  lost  sons  of  William 
White.  They  had  become  so  thoroughly  ' '  Indianized ' '  that 
they  refused  to  leave  the  tribe  and  come  back  to  their 
people. 

.On  the  day  of  the  boys'  capture,  William  White  was 
getting  out  a  rock  for  a  hearth.  These  rocks  were  cut  from 
a  single  stone,  and  were  called  ' '  Hath-stones. "  When  no 
trace  of  his  boys  could  be  found,  Mr.  White  went  on  with 
his  hearth  making,  laying  the  "hath-stone"  in  its  place, 
and  on  it  he  carved  the  date  of  their  capture.  The  stone 
is  still  to  be  seen  in  a  hearth  in  the  home  now  located  where 
White's  house  stood.  The  date  and  names  are  plainly 
visible.  Some  of  White's  descendants  still  reside  in  the 
historical  home. — ROBERTA  G.  TURNER,  Xavier  Chapter,  D. 
A.  R.,  Rome,  Ga. 


A  LEGEND  OF  LOVER'S  LEAP,  COLUMBUS, 
GEORGIA. 

One  mile  above  the  city  of  Columbus,  Georgia,  the  Chat- 
tahoochee's  turbid  waters  dash,  fret  and  foam  in  angry 
surges  over  and  among  a  group  of  giant  bowlders  forming 
what  was  called  by  the  Red  Men  of  the  forest,  "Tumbling 
Falls." 

From  the  eastern  bank  of  the  river  rises  a  rugged,  per- 
pendicular cliff  to  a  lofty  height,  which  is  covered  almost 
to  its  verge  by  majestic  trees,  vines  and  shrubs  of  a  semi- 
tropical  growth.  This  is  crowned  by  a  colossal  bowlder  of 
dark  granite,  and  from  its  summit  is  one  of  the  most  magni- 
ficent and  picturesque  views  of  river  scenery  that  nature 
has  produced. 

This  is  "Lover's  Leap,"  famous  in  song  and  story; 
where  the  "Young  Eagle"  of  the  Cowetas  clasped  to  his 
brave  heart  the  bright  "Morning  Star"  of  the  Cussetas  and 
leaped  into  the  deep,  restless  waters  below. 


338  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

The  Alabama  hills,  forming  a  long,  undulating  chain, 
and  covered  with  verdant  beauty,  arise  across  the  river, 
which,  below  the  precipice,  flows  gently  onward  until  it 
reaches  the  city  limits,  where  the  waters  again  dash  with 
insane  fury  over  clustering  bowlders  and  form  the  Coweta 
Falls,  which  are  there  arrested  and  utilized  by  the  pale- 
faced  stranger  to  turn  thousands  of  looms  and  spindles  for 
his  own  use  and  profit. 

A  short  distance  below  the  Leap  is  the  "Silver  Wam- 
pum," a  lovely  stream  of  pellucid  water,  which  rises 
beneath  a  clump  of  sweet-scented  bays  and  magnolias,  and 
flows  and  quivers  in  sunlight  and  moonlight,  like  a  silver 
girdle,  along  its  green  and  flowerdecked  banks,  until  it 
reaches  a  rocky  bed,  where  it  falls  by  a  succession  of  cas- 
cades, which  form  an  exquisite  fringe  to  the  "Wampum" 
before  dropping  into  the  Chattahoochee. 

There  the  beautiful  "Morning  Star"  would  often  sit 
indulging  in  love  dreams,  as  she  beaded  the  gay  moccasins, 
bags  and  wampums,  while  the  "Young  Eagle"  followed 
the  chase.  There  he  would  bring  her  the  first  fruits  and 
flowers  of  the  season. 

From  some  warmer  climate  unknown  to  his  rivals  he 
would  often  procure  boughs  of  the  fragrant  calycanthus, 
queenly  magnolias  and  sweet-smelling  jasmines,  and  secret- 
ly adorn  this  sylvan  retreat  in  anticipation  of  her  com- 
ing, long  before  the  native  buds  began  to  expand  their 
beauty.  Frequently  she  would  be  startled  in  her  blissful 
reveries  by  the  rolled  petal  of  a  magnolia  falling  like  a 
great  snow-flake  at  her  feet. 

This  she  recognized  as  a  private  dispatch  from  "The 
Young  Eagle,"  Cohamoteker  (blow  gun)  to  apprise  her 
of  his  approach  and  hastily  arising  she  would  eagerly  await 
his  coming. 

At  a  later  date,  when  duty  required  her  attentions  at 
the  wigwam,  she  would  frequently  find  rare  products  of  the 
chase  suspended  without.  This  was  always  prepared  with 
unusual  care,  and  relished  by  her  father,  the  chief,  who 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  339 

was  too  old  to  indulge  often  in  his  favorite  pastime,  and 
was  somewhat  dependent  upon  his  braves  for  many  luxuries 
of  that  kind. 

Consequently,  he  did  not  question  the  source  from  which 
they  came,  but  when  particularly  pleased  with  his  repast  he 
would  say: 

"Yaho  Hadjo  (Crazy  Wolf)  is  good.  In  his  wigwam 
will  be  found  the  richest  venison  and  rarest  birds  of  the 
air.  He  is  a  worthy  mate  for  the  Morning  Star ! ' ' 

When  a  child  she  had  been  betrothed  to  Young  Eagle, 
the  noble  son  of  the  Coweta  chief.  Their  love  had  grown 
with  their  growth  and  strengthened  with  their  strength, 
until  it  had  reached  an  intensity  where  death  appeared 
preferable  to  a  life  apart. 

A  rivalry  had  suddenly  sprung  up  between  the  two 
tribes,  who  had  so  long  smoked  the  calumet  of  peace  to- 
gether. The  pledged  word  of  the  veterans  was  broken,  and 
a  feud  more  deadly  than  that  of  the  Montagues  and  Capu- 
lets  then  existed  between  the  brave  Cowetas  and  Cussetas, 
who  were  of  equal  prowess. 

The  aged  chief  of  the  latter  could  no  longer  follow  the 
warpath  with  the  alacrity  of  his  youth,  but  by  the  council 
fire  all  did  reverence  to  his  eloquence,  and  were  ready  to 
rally  at  his  battle-cry. 

His  lion-hearted  sons,  the  pride  of  a  war-like  sire,  had 
gone  in  the  vigor  of  their  early  manhood  to  the  Spirit  Land 
and  the  chieftain  stood  alone,  like  a  giant  oak  of  the 
forest,  stately  and  grand  in  age  and  decay,  with  the  once 
vigorous  branches  all  leafless  and  dead  save  one,  which 
still  flourished  in  pristine  beauty. 

His  daughter,  with  her  starry  eyes  and  step  as  fleet  and 
graceful  as  a  wild  fawn,  was  the  idol  of  his  heart.  In 
childhood  he  had  called  her  "Minechee"  (smart,  active.) 
As  she  grew  in  stature  and  beauty,  twining  herself  more 
closely  around  his  heart,  he  called  her  ' '  The  Morning  Star. ' ' 
for  she  would  arise  with  the  birds,  and  often  waken  him 


340  REVOLUTIONARY  HEADER 

from  slumber  with  songs  and  merry  laughter  while  prepar- 
ing for  his  comfort. 

By  the  latter  name  she  was  known  among  the  tribe. 

''The  Morning  Star  is  up  and  shames  the  laggard  to 
the  chase!  He  should  have  been  over  the  hills  and  far 
away. ' ' 

The  young  warriors  likened  her  to  some  ideal  being, 
who  basked  in  the  smile  of  the  Great  Spirit,  and  wor- 
shiped her  with  truly  loyal  hearts.  If  we  could  raise  the 
curtain  of  time,  and  read  the  thoughts  that  agitated  the 
dusky  bosoms  of  those  fearless  young  braves,  it  would  be 
evident  that  the  affection  and  attention  lavished  on  their 
old  chief  was  partially  due  to  their  admiration  for  the 
bright  and  beautiful  Morning  Star. 

Among  her  many  suitors  was  Yaho  Hadjo,  who  had 
cunningly  ingratiated  himself  into  her  father's  favor,  and 
had  long  vainly  sought  the  hand  and  heart  of  the  bright- 
eyed  maiden.  In  his  fierce  wrath,  he  had  secretly  vowed 
vengeance  against  a  more  successful  rival.  Under  the  garb 
of  friendship  and  loyalty  to  his  chief,  he  had  secured  a 
firm  footing  in  his  wigwam,  and  thus  constituted  himself 
a  spy  on  the  actions  of  the  unsuspecting  daughter. 

She  had  waited  long  and  patiently,  hoping  that  time 
would  soften  the  feud  and  remove  every  impediment  to 
her  union  with  the  peerless  Young  Eagle,  while  he  had  en- 
deavored to  conciliate  his  tribe  by  every  possible  means 
that  a  brave  warrior  could  to  restore  peace  to  the  nation. 

Alas!  jealousy,  that  hydra-headed  monster,  had  com- 
pletely enslaved  the  heart  of  Yaho  Hadjo,  and  at  its  bid- 
ding he  continued  to  secretly  add  fresh  fuel  to  each  expir- 
ing flame  until  it  had  reached  enormous  proportions,  and 
open  hostilities  seemed  inevitable. 

The  lovers  no  longer  dared  to  meet  by  day,  but  beside 
the  Silver  Wampum,  when  the  Great  Spirit  marshalled  his 
starry  hosts  through  the  blue  vaulted  sky,  they  met  to  re- 
new vows  of  eternal  love. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  341 

The  stealthy  footsteps  of  Yaho  Hadjo  had  followed  the 
Morning  Star  to  the  trysting  place,  and  his  watchful  eye 
had  witnessed  the  tender  meeting  with  the  Young  Eagle. 

The  plans  of  the  jealous  rival  were  immediately  formed 
with  characteristic  craftiness.  He  then  cautiously  retraced 
his  steps  and  sought  the  presence  of  his  chief. 

Into  his  ear  the  wily  creature  whispered  a  malignant 
falsehood  of  broken  faith,  treachery  and  a  contemplated 
raid  by  the  Cowetas  upon  the  Cussetas. 

The  old  warrior's  anger  was  instantly  aroused.  With 
all  the  venom  of  his  nature  rankling  in  his  savage  heart, 
he  arose  to  give  the  war-whoop  to  his  sleeping  braves. 

But  Yaho  Hadjo  urged  extreme  caution,  saying  the 
Young  Eagle  was  the  ruling  spirit  and  instigator  of  the 
intended  diabolical  assault,  and  was  perhaps  now  prowling 
around  like  a  hungry  fox  with  a  hope  of  capturing  the 
Morning  Star.  A  better  and  surer  plan  would  be  to  offer 
privately  a  handsome  reward  for  the  person  or  scalp  of  the 
Young  Eagle. 

By  that  means  the  villainous  savage  thought  to  have 
his  unsuspecting  rival  cruelly  assassinated  and  his  body 
secretly  disposed  of  without  arousing  any  suspicion  of  the 
dark  deed  among  the  Cowetas. 

He  doubted  not  the  success  of  his  cowardly  undertak- 
ing; and  then,  without  opposition,  he  would  secure  the 
beautiful  maiden  for  his  squaw. 

He  dared  not  insinuate  to  the  chief  that  his  daughter 
would  have  been  a  willing  captive,  for  he  had  confidence 
in  her  integrity,  and  knew  she  would  never  forsake  him  to 
link  her  fate  with  his  enemy.  She  had  made  a  promise 
to  this  effect,  and  the  Morning  Star  never  dealt  falsely. 

At  the  conclusion  of  Yaho  Had  jo's  heartless  suggestion, 
the  old  man  bowed  his  head  in  troubled  thought  for  a  brief 
period,  and  then  rising  to  his  full  stature,  he  said : 

"Yes,  yes;  it  is  best!  Go  say  to  my  young  warriors 
that  he  who  brings  the  chief  the  person  or  scalp  from  the 
dead  head  of  the  daring  Young  Eagle  of  the  base  Cowetas, 


342  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

shall  wear  on  his  brave  heart  the  Morning  Star  of  the 
Cussetas. ' ' 

Yaho  Hadjo  hastened  to  arouse  a  few  sleeping  braves 
from  their  couches  and  they  hurried  forth  rapidly  but 
noiselessly  to  the  Silver  Wampum. 

The  unsuspecting  lovers  were  totally  oblivious  of  sur- 
rounding danger,  and  loth  to  separate,  they  lingered  for  a 
last  farewell  and  final  embrace,  when  stealthy  footsteps 
were  heard  approaching. 

They  gave  a  startled  glance  around  and  beheld  Yaho 
Hadjo  and  his  followers  with  uplifted  tomahawks  rushing 
madly  upon  them. 

Minchee   threw   her   arms   wildly   around   her   lover. 

For  a  brief  second  the  assailants  halted,  not  daring  to 
strike  the  daughter  of  their  chief. 

The  Young  Eagle  clasped  her  firmly  to  his  bosom  and 
bounded  away  with  the  speed  of  an  antelope,  he  knew  not 
wither. 

Onward,  over  rocks  and  dells  he  flew  with  his  precious 
burden,  her  arms  thrown  protectingly  around  and  above 
him.  Upon  the  narrow  defile  to  the  fearful  precipice  he 
bore  her  and  then  suddenly  halted.  He  thought  to  release 
her  there,  believing  she  could  return  safely  to  her  father, 
but  she  grappled  to  him  as  though  her  slight  arms  were 
hooks  of  steel. 

The  hot  breath  of  the  hated  rival  was  felt  upon  his 
cheek,  and  his  tomahawk  flashed  like  a  meteor  above  him. 

The  Young  Eagle  gave  the  would-be  assassin  one  proud, 
defiant  glance,  and  folding  the  Morning  Star  in  a  closer 
embrace,  he  leaped  into  the  foaming  torrent  below. 

Yaho  Had  jo's  uplifted  weapon  fell  forward  with  a 
sudden  impetus  which  forced  him  headlong  down  the  lofty 
pinnacle,  among  the  sharp,  rugged  bowlders,  where  his 
body  was  afterwards  found  a  mangled,  lifeless  corpse. 

The  remaining  warriors  were  transfixed  with  horror 
and  dismay  as  they  gazed  wildly  into  the  furious  river. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  343 

To  attempt  a  rescue  would  have  been  folly  and  madness, 
as  no  breathing  creature  could  have  survived  the  fall. 

Slowly  and  sadly  they  then  retraced  their  steps  and 
silently  entered  the  presence  of  the  childless  patriarch. 

Alarmed  by  the  expression  of  their  grief-stricken  faces 
he  exclaimed: 

"Where  is  Yaho  Had  jo?  Why  does  the  Morning  Star 
linger  in  the  forest  ? ' ' 

The  boldest  of  them  dropped  his  head  and  answered 
slowly  and  hoarsely: 

"The  Great  Spirit  has  taken  her  from  us  to  brighten 
his  own  beautiful  land.  She  will  come  no  more  to  gladden 
our  hearts.  The  Morning  Star  will  never  beam  on  the 
hunter's  pathway  again!" 

The  chief  listened  in  silence,  but  evidently  did  not  com- 
prehend. An  explanation  was  sternly  demanded. 

At  length  the  sad  story  was  told  with  all  of  its  tender 
and  heart-rending  details. 

He  realized  at  last  his  total  bereavement,  and  acknowl- 
edged it  was  the  result  of  Yaho  Hadjo's  jealousy  and 
falsehood.  Fierce  and  vindictive  was  the  malediction 
pronounced  upon  the  cowardly  murderer. 

A  dead  calm  followed;  then  rising  and  clasping  his 
hands  high  above  his  head,  he  stood  for  a  moment  like  a 
splendid  bronze  statue  of  despair,  and  in  singularly 
pathetic  tones  exclaimed: 

"Minechee!  Minechee!  Bright  Morning  Star!  Sole 
treasure  of  my  aged  heart !  Gone,  gone,  forever,  and  I  am 
desolate ! ' ' 

He  gave  one  long,  low,  piercing  wail  and  tottering  as  a 
tree  beneath  the  final  stroke  of  the  woodman's  axe,  he  fell 
prostrate  to  the  earth. 

His  companions  exerted  themselves  in  behalf  of  the 
stricken  chieftain  and  partially  succeeded  in  restoring  him 
to  consciousness,  but  he  refused  to  be  comforted  and  de- 
clined all  nourishment. 


344  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

After  a  prolonged  interval  of  silence,  he  arose,  quitted 
their  presence  and  slowly  descended  the  hill  to  a  ravine 
in  the  bluffs  and  seated  himself. 

He  signified  a  desire  to  be  alone.  He  wished  to  humble 
himself  before  the  Great  Spirit,  that  he  might  take  pity 
on  him.  Finding  he  could  not  be  persuaded  to  leave  the 
place,  his  braves  stretched  a  mat  above  his  bowed  head  and 
placing  food  and  water  within  reach  they  left  him  alone 
in  his  sorrow. 

A  few  days  after  they  found  him  occupying  the  same 
position,  but  cold  and  lifeless. — MRS.  MARY  COOK. 


INDIAN    MOUND,    EARLY    COUNTY,    GEORGIA. 

On  the  outskirts  of  Blakely,  County  Seat  of  Early 
County,  and  commanding  a  view  of  a  beautiful  stretch  of 
landscape,  rises  the  famous  old  Indian  Mound,  supposed 
to  have  been  made  by  the  Creek  Indians,  who  hunted  and 
fished  and  roved  so  happily  through  the  tall  pines  and 
magnolias,  the  great  oaks  and  low  marshes.  While  tradi- 
tion associates  this  particular  mound  with  the  Creeks  and 
Cherokees,  it  has  been  argued  by  scientists  that  it  must 
have  been  built  by  a  race  of  people  who  preceded  the  In- 
dians and  were  partly  civilized;  however,  that  may  be, 
the  visitor  to  Early  has  missed  a  rare  bit  of  romance  and 
historic  thought,  who  fails  to  see  the  Indian  Mound, 
reminiscent  as  it  is  of  the  sacredness  of  a  brave  race,  now 
almost  extinct. 

The  Mound  is  fully  seventy-five  feet  high  and  is  almost 
five  hundred  feet  in  circumference.  It  is  covered  with 
large  trees  of  oak  and  the  same  dense  foliage  of  bamboo, 
pine  and  cedar  as  that  which  grows  so  profusely  over  the 
surrounding  country  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach.  The 
picturesque  and  fertile  valleys  below  have  now  become  a 
favorite  place  for  pleasure  seekers  each  spring,  for  picnic 
grounds  and  camping,  and  the  Indian  Mound  cannot  fail  to 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  345 

impress  the  most  heedless  as  it  rises  mysteriously  and 
majestic.  Parties  in  search  of  buried  treasures  have 
penetrated  the  Mound  to  a  depth  of  fifty  feet,  but  nothing 
has  ever  been  found  except  human  bones.  Then  later 
scientists  have  sunk  a  shaft  in  the  very  center  of  this 
Mound  to  a  great  depth  and  have  reached  a  mass  of  bones 
five  feet  in  thickness.  Nothing  to  throw  light  upon  the 
builders  of  this  huge  old  relic  has  ever  been  unearthed  but 
bones,  and  the  people  of  the  County,  with  interested 
visitors,  have  nearly  all  associated  the  site  with  the  Indians 
who  inhabited  so  thickly  this  part  of  Georgia  before  Early 
County  was  created. 

Early  County  was  created  by  Legislature,  October  1818, 
and  included  then  the  Counties  of  Baker,  Calhoun,  Decatur, 
Miller,  Mitchell  and  Dougherty.  It  was  named  in  honor 
of  George  Peter  Early,  Chief  Executive  of  Georgia  in  1813. 
Governor  Early,  previous  to  the  purchase  of  these  lands 
from  the  Indians,  had  rendered  great  service  to  the  white 
settlers  here  in  protecting  them  from  the  Indians,  in  both 
their  treaties  with  the  Indians  and  in  protection  to  their 
lives.  In  gratitude  for  this  service  Early  County  was 
named. 

While  it  has  never  been  positively  decided  whether  the 
Mound  Builders  or  the  Indians  are  the  original  makers  of 
Indian  Mound,  it  stands  a  grim  memorial  of  a  dead  and 
gone  race,  worthy  of  a  visit,  with  its  great  trees  yellow 
with  age,  and  weeds  and  moss  overgrown,  the  only  epitaphs 
to  the  mystery  within  its  depths. — MRS.  WALTER  THOMAS, 
Regent,  Governor  Peter  Early  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


346  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


STORIETTE  OF  STATES  DERIVED  FROM 
INDIAN  NAMES. 

So  many  States  are  derived  from  Indian  names,  so  I 
write  this  storiette,  using  all  that  have  Indian  origin. 

Illinois — Tribe  of  Red  Men. 
Alabama — Here  we  rest. 
Arizona — Small  Springs. 
Arkanses — Bend  in  the  Smoky  Water. 
Connecticut — (Long  River. 
Idaho — Gun  of  the  Mountain. 
Indiana — Indian's  Land. 
Iowa — Beautiful  Land. 
Kansas — Smoky  Water. 
Kentucky — At  the  head  of  the  river. 
Massachusetts — Place  of  Blue  Hills. 
Michigan — Fish  Wier. 
Mississippi — Great  Father  of  Water. 
Mississippi — Great  Father  of  Water. 
Missouri1 — Muddy   (River). 
Nebraska — Water  Valley. 
North  and  South  Dakota,  allies : 
Ohio — Beautiful  River. 
Oklahoma — Home  of  the  Red  Men. 
Tennessee — River  with  a  Great  Bend. 
Texas — ^Friends. 
Utah— Ute. 

Wisconsin — Gathering  of  the  waters. 
Wyoming — Great  Plains. 

Once  upon  a  time  a  tribe  of  Red  Men  (Illinois)  set  out 
to  find  a  Plan  of  the  Blue  Hills  (Massachusetts.)  Their 
canoes  were  safely  launched  in  the  Long  River  (Connecti- 
cut). At  the  Bend  in  the  Smoky  Water  (Arkansas)  they 
were  surprised  to  see  a  canoe  coming  their  way  and  that 
it  was  guided  by  a  maid  Minnehaha,  the  beautiful  daughter 
of  Uakomis  of  the  Ute  (Utah)  Tribe  of  Indians.  "Young 
maid"  said  the  gallant  Chief  Hiawatha,  "Is  this  where  the 
Indians  Land?"  (Indiana).  "Yes,"  replied  the  maid, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  347 

"This  Water  Valley  (Nebraska)  is  the  home  of  the  Red 
Men"  (Oklahoma).  Then  spoke  the  Chief,  who  had  at 
once  been  attracted  to  the  Maid:- "This  is  indeed  a  Beauti- 
ful Land  (Iowa)  and  I  dare  say  you  are  the  Gem  of  the 
Mountain"  (Idaho).  The  maid  smiled  and  said:  "I  hope 
we  will  be  friends"  (Texas.)  "Let  us  row  to  the  Head  of 
the  River"  (Kentucky).  As  they  drifted  near  the  bank 
they  decided  to  tarry  by  the  Beautiful  River  (Ohio). 
"Here  we  rest"  (Alabama),  said  Hiawatha  and  whispered 
words  of  love.  As  they  returned  to  the  other  members  of 
their  tribe,  who  had  pitched  their  tents  on  the  mountain 
side  by  some  Small  Springs  (Arizona)  each  man  looked  up 
as  the  two  approached  and  read  the  happiness  that  was 
theirs,  by  their  smiling  faces.  "We  will  return"  said 
Hiawatha,  ' '  to  Nakomis  and  his  Allies,  of  the  Great  Plains 
near  the  River"  (Missouri),  "the  Great  Father  of  Waters 
(Mississippi),  and  there  on  the  Banks  of  the  Sky-Tinted 
Water  (Minnesota)  we  will  pitch  our  Wigwam  near  the 
Fish  Wier  (Michigan)  and  there  watch  the  gathering  of  the 
Waters  (Wisconsin)  and  live  in  peace  and  happiness  until 
we  journey  to  our  Happy  Hunting  Ground. ' ' — MRS.  WILL 
CHIDSEY,  Rome,  Ga.,  Xavier  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


348  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 


SEQUOIA,  INVENTOR  OF  THE  CHEROKEE 
ALPHABET. 

The  invention  of  the  Cherokee  alphabet  by  Sequoia,  or 
George  Guess,  in  1815,  was  the  most  remarkable  achieve- 
ment in  the  history  of  the  Indian  tribes  of  America. 

Sequoia  was  in  appearance  and  habits,  a  full  Cherokee, 
though  he  was  the  grandson  of  a  white  man.  He  was  born 
in  Tennessee  about  1765,  and  he  lived  at  one  time  near 
Chiaha,  now  Rome,  Georgia,  but  for  some  years  before  the 
Cherokees  were  moved  to  the  West,  he  lived  at  Alpine,  in 
Chattooga  County,  on  what  was  later  known  as  the  Samuel 
Force  plantation. 

This  American  Cadmus  was  an  illiterate  Cherokee  In- 
dian. He  could  neither  write  or  speak  English,  and  in  his 
invention  of  the  alphabet  he  had  to  depend  entirely  on  his 
own  native  resources. 

He  was  led  to  think  on  the  subject  of  writing  the  Chero- 
kee language,  by  a  conversation  which  took  place  one  eve- 
ning at  Santa.  Some  young  men  were  remarking  on  the 
superior  talents  of  the  white  people.  They  saw  that  the 
whites  could  "put  a  talk"  on  paper  and  send  it  to  any 
distance,  and  it  would  be  understood  by  those  who  received 
it.  This  seemed  strange  to  the  Indians,  but  Sequoia  de- 
clared he  could  do  it  himself ;  and  picking  up  a  flat  stone, 
he  scratched  on  it  with  a  pin,  and  after  a  few  minutes  read 
to  his  friends  a  sentence  which  he  had  written,  by  making 
a  mark  for  each  word.  This  produced  only  a  laugh  among 
his  companions.  But  the  inventive  powers  of  Sequoia's 
mind  were  now  aroused  to  action,  and  nothing  short  of 
being  able  to  write  the  Cherokee  language  would  satisfy 
him.  In  examining  the  language  he  found  that  it  is  com- 
posed of  the  various  combinations  of  about  ninety  mono- 
sylables  and  for  each  of  these  sylables  he  formed  a  charac- 
ter. Some  of  the  characters  were  taken  from  an  English 
spelling  book,  some  are  English  letters  turned  upside  down, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  349 

some  are  his  own  invention;  each  character  in  the  Chero- 
kee alphabet  stands  for  a  monosylable. 

From  the  structure  of  the  Cherokee  dialect,  the  syllabic 
alphabet  is  also  in  the  nature  of  a  grammar,  so  that  those 
who  know  the  language  by  ear,  and  master  the  alphabet, 
can  at  once  read  and  write.  Owing  to  the  extreme  sim- 
plicity of  this  system,  it  can  be  acquired  in  a  few  days. 

After  more  than  two  year's  work  his  system  was  com- 
pleted. Explaining  to  his  friends  his  new  invention,  he 
said,  "we  can  now  have  speaking  papers  as  well  as  white 
men. ' ' 

But  he  found  great  difficulty  in  persuading  his  people 
to  learn  it ;  nor  could  he  succeed,  until  he  went  to  Arkansas 
and  taught  a  few  persons  there,  one  of  whom  wrote  a  letter 
to  a  friend  in  Chiaha  and  sent  it  by  Sequoia,  who  read  it 
to  the  people.  This  excited  much  curiosity.  Here  was 
"talk  in  the  Cherokee  language,"  come  from  Arkansas 
sealed  in  a  paper.  This  convinced  many,  and  the  newly 
discovered  art  was  seized  with  avidity  by  the  people  of  the 
tribe,  and,  from  the  extreme  simplicity  of  the  plan,  the 
use  of  it  soon  became  general.  Any  one,  on  fixing  in  his 
memory  the  names  and  forms  of  the  letters,  immediately 
possessed  the  art  of  reading  and  writing.  This  could  be 
acquired  in  one  day. 

The  Cherokees,  (who,  as  a  people,  had  always  been 
illiterate)  were,  in  the  course  of  a  few  months,  able  to  read 
and  write  in  their  own  language.  They  accomplished  this 
without  going  to  school. 

The  Cherokee  Council  adopted  this  alphabet  in  1821, 
and  in  a  short  time  the  bible  and  other  books  were  printed 
in  the  language,  and  a  newspaper,  The  Cherokee  Phoenix, 
devoted  entirely  to  the  interests  of  the  Indians,  was  pub- 
lished, in  1826,  at  New  Echota,  the  capitol  of  the  Cherokee 
Nation,  situated  about  five  miles  west  of  Calhoun,  in 
Gordon  County,  Georgia. 

This  paper  was  edited  by  Chief  Elias  Bondinot,  one  of 
the  signers  of  the  New  Echota  Treaty. 


350  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

Sequoia  spent  much  of  his  time  with  his  kindred  who 
had  already  gone  to  the  West,  and  a  few  years  after  the 
final  removal  of  the  Cherokees  from  Georgia,  he  was 
instrumental  in  establishing  several  newspapers  in  their 
new  home. 

This  Indian  remains  today  the  only  man,  in  the  long 
history  of  the  aborigines,  who  has  done  anything  for  the 
real  and  lasting  benefit  of  the  race.  His  Cherokee  alphabet 
is  in  general  use  by  every  Indian  tribe  in  America. 

Scientists  have  honored  him  by  naming  the  largest  tree 
that  grows  in  California  the  Sequoia  Gigantia.  This  name 
was  given  to  the  big  red  wood  tree  by  Dr.  Eulicher,  the 
famous  Hungarian  botanist,  who  was  born  1804  and  died 
1849.  The  tree  is  native  to  California  and  is  the  largest 
known,  often  measuring  thirty  to  thirty-six  feet  in  diame- 
ter, height  from  two  hundred  to  four  hundred  feet,  bark  is 
often  fifteen  inches  thick. 

In  1908,  a  specimen  of  the  Sequoia  Gigantia  came  in  a 
letter  from  California.  The  tiny  sprig  was  five  inches  high 
and  one-eighth  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  and  was  planted  on 
Myrtle  Hill  cemetery  in  Rome,  Georgia.  It  is  now  (1913) 
about  thirty  inches  high  and  one  inch  in  diameter. 

The  Sequoia  Gigantia  is  an  evergreen  monument  to  the 
American  Cadmus,  a  one-time  resident  of  Rome,  Georgia. 

In  his  honor,  Oklahoma  has  named  a  County  Sequoyah. 
— BEATRICE  O'REAR  TREADAWAY,  Xavier  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  351 


THE  BOY  AND  HIS  ARROW. 

The  Barbadoes  or  Winward  Islands  have  long  been  the 
territory  of  Great  Britain  and  her  colonies  were  planted 
there  as  early  as  on  the  main  land  of  America. 

Early  in  the  eighteenth  century  dissatisfaction  arose 
concerning  taxes  and  other  injustices,  and  some  of  these 
colonists  removed  to  the  continent,  chiefly  to  Virginia  and 
the  Carolinas.  Among  these  was  Edmond  Reid,  with  his 
family,  landing  at  Norfolk,  Virginia.  He  brought  with 
him  quite  a  number  of  slaves.  These  slaves  were  remark- 
able in  many  ways.  They  must  have  been  part  Carib; 
they  had  thin  lips,  straight  noses  and  arched  feet.  They 
were  erect  and  alert.  Some  of  these  slaves  in  the  fourth 
generation  came  to  my  mother  and  were  above  the  ordinary 
African  and  were  so  dark  they  evidently  had  no  Caucasian 
blood. 

John  Reid,  son  of  Edmond  Reid,  married  Elizabeth 
Steppe,  and  served  in  the  Revolution.  James,  the  son  of 
John  and  Elizabeth,  was  born  during  the  Revolution, 
February  21st,  1778.  Archery  was  a  great  sport  in  those 
days,  handed  down  no  doubt  from  our  British  ancestry 
and  kept  alive  by  the  bows  and  arrows  of  the  Indians, 
some  of  whom  were  still  among  the  neighbors  in  the  colonies. 
At  twelve  years  of  age  James  Reid  was  shooting  arrows, 
and  as  an  experiment  shot  one  up  straight  toward  the  sky. 
Quickly  it  went  up,  but  more  quickly,  with  accelerated 
speed  it  returned  and  pierced  the  eye  of  the  little  archer. 
Painfully  the  arrow  (in  this  case  a  pin  point)  was  taken 
from  the  eye.  Youth  and  a  fine  constitution  combined  to 
heal  the  wound  without  disfigurement  of  the  eye,  and  so 
he  seemed  to  have  two  perfect  eyes,  while  one  was  sight- 
less. 

Our  young  Republic  was  just  beginning  to  try  her  pow- 
ers when  England  provoked  the  war  of  1812.  James  Reid, 
now  in  the  prime  of  manhood,  enlisted  when  the  British 
threatened  New  Orleans.  As  many  others  did,  he  left  his 


352  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

wife  and  two  little  ones  at  home  under  the  protection  of 
slaves. 

A  few  days  after  his  return  from  the  war,  on  a  summer 
day,  a  pain  came  to  the  eye  pierced  so  long  ago  by  the 
arrow.  The  local  physician  was  sent  for,  but  his  lotions  and 
applications  failed  to  give  relief.  At  that  time  no  surgeon, 
except  those  perhaps  in  France,  understood  surgery  of  the 
eye.  So  nature  took  her  course,  seemingly  a  cruel,  dreadful 
course.  The  suffering  man  could  neither  sleep  nor  eat  and 
finally  could  not  stay  in  the  house.  He  went  out  under  the 
trees  in  the  grove  and  when  unable  to  stand  rolled  around 
on  the  grass  in  great  agony.  His  wife  and  children  and 
servants  followed  him  with  cold  water  and  pillows — a  sor- 
rowing and  helpless  procession.  After  several  days  and 
nights  the  abscess  in  his  eye  bursted  and  gave  instant 
relief.  All  the  fluids  of  the  eye  escaped  leaving  it  sightless 
and  shrunken,  and  so  it  remained  ever  after.  I  never  see 
a  shrunken  eye  but  what  I  recall  the  old  man,  so  spirited, 
so  cheery,  so  kind,  our  own  grandfather  who  passed  away 
many  years  ago — MRS.  R.  H.  HARDAWAY,  Regent,  Sarah 
Dickinson  Chapter,  D.  A.  R. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  353 


INDIAN  SPRING,  GEORGIA. 

ROMANTIC  DISCOVERY. 

In  1792,  when  the  country  in  this  vicinity  was  clothed 
in  its  swaddlings  of  nature,  and  the  red  man  and  wild 
beasts  alone  trod  the  hills  and  valleys  west  of  the  Ocmulgee, 
a  solitary  huntsman  was  wending  his  way  north,  south  of 
the  Towaliga,  about  where  the  public  road  to  Forsyth  is 
now  being  turnpiked.  The  party  was  a  model  of  his  class — 
large,  muscular,  completely  equipped,  a  frame  strong  in 
its  every  development,  and  a  general  contour  which  indica- 
ted that  he  knew  nothing  of  fear,  and  dreaded  not  the 
dangers  of  the  wilderness  in  which  he  was  traveling.  A 
deep  melancholy  on  his  face,  the  flashing  of  his  dark  eyes, 
and  an  occasional  sight,  evidenced  he  carried  an  "iron  in 
his  soul,"  and  was  actuated  by  a  purpose  that  knew  no 
turning.  This  was  Gabriel  Dunlap — a  Georgian.  His 
object  in  thus  absenting  himself  from  society  will  be  seen 
hereafter. 

Dunlap  was  a  careful  and  wary  hunter,  and  in  this 
hitherto  untrodden  field  was  specially  on  the  alert.  He 
knew  that  dangers  lurked  around,  and  was  cautious  at 
every  step.  While  thus  walking  and  watching,  he  was 
startled  by  the  war  whoop  of  the  savages,  which  seemed  to 
burst  from  every  ambush  around  him.  He  knew  his  retreat 
was  cut  off,  for  a  hundred  savages  emerged  from  the  thick- 
ets lining  the  Towaliga.  Therefore,  but  one  course  was  left 
to  be  pursued — that  of  taking  a  due  north  direction.  Leav- 
ing the  river  and  crossing  the  hills,  he  ran  without  any 
purpose  beyond  making  his  escape.  And  thus  he  ran  for 
miles — as  the  yells  of  his  pursuers  would  subside,  hope 
bracing  him  up,  again  depressed  by  the  reiteration  of  the 
voices  of  his  enemies.  At  length,  when  almost  ready  to 
fall  from  exhaustion  and  thirst — his  vitals  scorched  as  with 
fire — hope  whispered  "a  little  farther."  And  soon,  over- 
joyed and  exhausted,  he  was  able  to  spring  into  a  canebrake 


354  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

dark  as  night,  where  he  slept  unconscious  of  anything  that 
occurred  around  him. 

REINFORCEMENTS. 

When  he  awoke,  yet  half  dreaming,  Dunlap  gazed  about 
him  some  time  before  he  could  "realize  the  situation." 
With  great  effort  he  arose,  staggered  forward,  but  fell 
against  a  larger  stone,  and  here,  to  his  delight,  he  heard 
the  trickling  of  water.  Quickly  he  sought  to  slake 
his  burning  thirst,  and  soon  found,  and  enjoyed,  what 
seemed  ice  water  in  a  canebrake  in  August.  He  drank  until 
every  desire  for  water  was  satisfied,  yet  none  of  the  un- 
pleasant feelings  that  often  follow  such  indulgence  were 
experienced.  On  the  contrary,  he  felt  new  life  and  vigor, 
and  set  out  to  place  a  greater  distance  between  himself  and 
his  enemies.  His  only  safe  course  he  knew,  was  to  travel 
in  a  northerly  direction,  and,  after  imbibing  another 
copious  draught  from  the  welcome  fountain,  he  set  out, 
toiling  through  the  cane  that  covered  the  bottom.  When  he 
was  about  reaching  the  northern  edge  of  this  dense  retreat, 
a  well  known  signal  greeted  his  ear.  To  this  he  responded. 
His  response  was  replied  to  by  another  signal,  when  he 
quickly  emerged  from  the  brake,  ascended  the  hill,  and  on 
approaching  a  large  oak  then  standing  on  the  site  of  the 
present  Elder  Hotel,  was  greeted  thus: 

"Hallo,  Gabe!  whar  did  you  cum  from?  Have  you 
been  squattin '  in  the  thicket  yonder  ? ' ' 

"I'll  be  smashed,"  answered  Dunlap,  "If  here  aint 
Jube  Cochran.  And,  Jube,  I'm  gladder  to  see  you  than 
if  I  had  knocked  out  a  panther's  eye  with  old  Betsey  here, 
and  without  picking  her  flint,  on  a  two  hundred  yard  line. 
Cause  why — I'm  lost  and  aint  nowhar  ef  you  aint  some 
place. ' ' 

And  next  the  two  friends  met  with  a  hearty  shake 
of  hands  and  a  union  of  warm  hearts,  such  as  convention- 
alities and  civilization  have  long  since  driven  from  the 
brightest  spot  in  Georgia.  The  huntsmen  refreshed  the 
inner  man,  recounted  their  several  recent  adventures,  and 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  355 

then  sought  a  place  of  rest,  which  they  soon  found  among 
the  rocks  skirting  the  river. 

Here  they  slept  until  midnight,  when  the  report  of  a 
gun  aroused  them.  Snuffing  danger  in  the  breeze,  they  at 
once  not  only  became  watchful,  but  sought  to  discover  the 
whereabouts  of  their  daring  neighbor;  and  finally,  in  the 
darkness,  almost  ran  against  two  human  forms,  whether 
paleface  or  Indian  they  could  not  make  out,  when  Cochran 
hailed : 

"Who'sthar?" 

"Watson,"  was  the  reply,  and  soon  there  was  another 
happy  greeting;  when  all  four  of  the  party  (one  a  small 
boy  named  Ben  Fitzpatrick)  walked  to  the  top  of  the  hill 
between  two  creeks,  and  again  rested  until  day  break,  recit- 
ing the  customary  yarns  of  the  border. 

Douglas  Watson  was  about  eighteen  years  of  age,  six 
feet  in  height,  and  boasted  of  possessing  a  well  developed 
muscular  frame.  His  companion,  Fitzpatrick,  was  an  or- 
phan boy,  who  had  the  temerity  common  to  adventurous 
youth  to  follow  Watson  in  these  wilds. 

Seated  by  their  camp  fire  Dunlap  explained  to  Watson 
the  invigorating  effect  the  water  in  the  canebrake,  at  the 
foot  of  the  hills,  had  had  upon  him  in  his  fainting  con- 
dition the  day  previous,  when  the  whole  party  again  sought 
the  cooling  spring,  and,  after  search,  found  it.  This  was 
Indian  Spring,  and  this  was  the  first  party  of  whites  who 
are  known  to  have  drunk  of  its  water.  At  this  gathering 
Watson  admitted  to  his  comrades  that  about  a  month 
previous  he  had  found  the  spring,  but  in  consequence  of 
its  smelling  like  gunpowder  he  fled  the  vicinity. 

Watson  and  Cochran  were  scouts,  sent  out  by  the  Gov- 
ernment in  the  Spring  of  1792.  Fitzpatrick  was  the 
shadow  of  Watson ;  and  Dunlap  divulged  to  his  new  friends 
his  history  and  mission  while  they  lingered  around  the 
spring. 


356  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

DUNLAP'S  HISTORY. 

To  be  brief :  Twelve  years  previous,  during  an  Indian 
raid  in  Bibb  County,  a  little  friend — a  ward  of  his  father — 
was  stolen  and  carried  away.  Then  and  there,  ere  the 
triumphant  yells  of  the  foe  were  silenced,  he  had  registered 
an  oath  in  Heaven,  which  was  baptized  by  the  falling  rain, 
never  again  to  seek  peace  until  he  found  it  in  the  rescue 
of  "Bright  Eyes" — his  lost  Nora.  Since  that  hour  his 
home  had  been  between  the  Towaliga  and  Ocmulgee,  and 
his  whole  exertion  was  to  find  the  lost  one  and  restore  her 
to  her  friends. 

A  BATTLE  AND  RETREAT. 

In  the  morning  the  party  left  the  Spring,  traveling 
down  stream,  but  in  a  few  moments  the  shoals  were  reached. 
Here  was  another  mystery,  which  to  Watson  appeared  more 
wonderful  than  did  the  gunpowder  spring.  They  had 
traveled  down  stream;  of  this  they  were  certain;  yet  they 
encountered  an  opposite  current,  and  were  amazed.  Fitz- 
patrick,  however,  soon  explored  the  vicinity  and  discovered 
the  meeting  of  the  waters  near  the  Spring.  Here  two 
creeks,  running  in  almost  opposite  directions,  met  fraternal- 
ly and  formed  the  Big  Sandy,  which  then  flowed  in  an 
easterly  direction  until  it  united  with  the  Ocmulgee. 

Crossing  at  the  foot  of  the  shoals,  the  party  started 
down  the  stream,  hunting  and  traveling  leisurely.  Noon 
found  them  at  a  little  spring  near  the  present  site  of  Tan- 
ner's bridge,  where  they  halted,  kindled  a  fire,  and  prepared 
to  cook  the  choice  bits  of  game  they  had  secured.  Here 
they  were  again  doomed  to  be  disappointed;  for  suddenly 
their  foe  burst  upon  them  in  overwhelming  numbers.  The 
odds  were  fearful,  but  rather  than  surrender — which  would 
have  been  death — the  contest  was  entered  upon. 

Many  heroes  whose  names  emblazon  the  pages  of  history 
never  exhibited  the  coolness  and  calculating  courage  of 
Ben  Fitzpatrick  in  his  first  battle.  He  stood  fearlessly  by 
the  side  of  his  companions,  fighting  bravely  until  Cochran 
fell  senseless,  having  been  struck  by  the  war  club  of  an  In- 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  357 

dian.  As  the  Indian  stooped  to  scalp  his  victim,  Ben 
plunged  his  hunting  knife  to  his  heart,  and,  when  the  brave 
uttered  his  death  yell,  the  boy  attempted  to  remove  his 
wounded  comrade.  At  this  moment  young  Watson  handed 
Ben  his  gun,  gathered  up  Cochran,  and  crying  out  "Now 
is  our  time,  Ben,"  ran  through  the  creek  into  the  dark 
swamp  beyond. 

They  were  now  safe,  for  deep  darkness  had  fallen,  and 
their  enemies  feared  to  pursue  them.  Cochran  recovered 
during  the  night,  but  diligent  search  failed  to  ascertain 
anything  as  to  the  fate  of  Dunlap;  and,  warned  by  the 
signal  smokes  of  the  enemy,  the  trio  started  early  next 
morning  for  the  nearest  block-house  east  of  the  Ocmulgee. 

DUNLAP  AND  NORA. 

But  Dunlap  was  not  lost.  He  was  shot  through  the 
left  shoulder  when  the  attack  was  first  made,  fainted  and 
fell,  and  was  scalped  and  left  for  dead.  He  lay  hours,  until 
nightfall — half  waking,  half  sleeping  and  dreaming.  Sud- 
denly he  felt  a  soft  hand  bathing  his  fevered  head.  He  knew 
this  kindness  came  not  from  savage  hands,  nor  from  the 
rough  goodness  of  a  fellow  huntsman,  for  the  sweetness  of 
an  angel's  breath  fanned  his  face.  Pain  was  forgotten, 
yet  he  was  afraid  to  move  lest  the  charm  should  be  broken 
and  the  vision  vanish.  Half  unconscious,  he  whispered,  as 
if  by  inspiration,  "Nora."  And  the  guardian  angel  hover- 
ed about  him  proved  to  be  the  Nora  for  whom  he  had  been 
searching.  She  suppressed  an  involuntary  scream  as  she 
recognized  the  object  of  her  compassion,  and,  laying  her 
hand  on  the  face  of  her  old  friend,  in  a  trembling  voice 
said: 

"  Oh !  my  more  than  brother,  have  we  met  at  last,  after 
so  many  long  and  weary  years  of  separation,  each  of  which 
has  seemed  an  eternity  ? ' ' 

The  recognition  was  mutual,  but  the  meeting  was  too 
happy,  too  full  of  sacred  joy,  to  be  intruded  upon.  The 
wounds  of  Dunlap  were  carefully  bound  up  by  Nora,  after 
the  fashion  of  her  companions  from  girlhood,  and  they  at 


358  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

once  removed  as  far  as  possible  from  the  vicinity  of  the 
fight.  They  were  not  discovered  the  next  morning  and  then 
commenced  a  long  and  weary  journey  homeward,  which 
extended  through  many  days.  At  last  they  saw  the  curling 
smoke  arising  from  their  native  cabin.  Here  the  long  lost 
were  greeted  with  joy,  and  at  an  early  day  there  was  a 
wedding — Dunlap  and  Nora  were  united,  and  at  once  set- 
tled down  to  the  realities  of  life. 

In  1796,  fearing  other  molestations  from  the  savages, 
who  were  then  hostile  to  the  whites,  the  Dunlap  family  sold 
their  lands  in  Bibb  and  removed  to  Liberty  County,  Geor- 
gia, where,  at  the  present  time,  many  of  their  children's 
children  may  be  found  occupying  high  social  positions. 

FATE  OP  OUR  HEROES. 

The  boy,  Ben  Fitzpatrick,  grew  up  to  manhood  in  com- 
pany with  his  friend,  Watson.  Subsequently  he  removed 
to  Montgomery,  Ala.,  where  he  died  a  short  time  since.  His 
career  in  his  adopted  State  was  an  honored  one,  he  having 
served  in  both  branches  of  the  National  Congress  and  as 
Governor  of  the  State.  Governor  Fitzpatrick  was  a  cousin 
of  Mrs.  Cynthia  Varner,  of  Indian  Spring.  After  the  In- 
dians, were  removed  from  this  section,  Douglas  Watson 
settled  in  Monroe  County,  where  he  resided  until  his  de- 
cease, which  occurred  a  few  years^ago.  Of  the  career  of 
Cochran  we  have  been  unable  to  obtain  any  data. 

The  foregoing  history  of  the  discovery  of  Indian  Spring 
by  the  whites  is  not  all  fiction.  It  is  an  "o'er  true  tale." 
"Duggie"  Watson,  the  hero  of  the  foregoing  pages — he 
who  feared  the  smell  of  gunpowder  when  he  first  looked 
upon  the  halfhidden  spring,  and  fled — has  often  repeated 
the  history  as  we  have  given  it  in  our  hearing. 

EARLY  SETTLEMENT. 

The  Indians  entertained  a  superstition  that  it  would  be 
unwise  for  any  of  their  tribe  to  make  a  permanent  resi- 
dence near  this  "Healing  water"  because  the  noise  and 
gambols  of  the  squaws  and  papooses  would  drive  the  spell. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  359 

from  the  water.  Thus,  as  late  as  1800,  the  visits  of  the  raca 
to  the  Spring,  though  frequently  made,  were  only  tem- 
porary, and  for  a  special  purpose  in  each  instance.  The 
tents  of  the  red  man  were  always  found  on  the  adjacent 
hills,  filled  with  invalids  who  were  brought  to  be  cured, 
and  again  returned  to  the  war  path  or  their  hunting 
grounds.  About  the  date  named,  Gen.  "Wm.  Mclntosh,  a 
half  breed,  and  a  cousin  of  Gov.  Troup,  erected  a  cabin  for 
his  own  use,  and  afterwards  spent  the  summers  here  with 
his  family.  This  broke  the  spell;  and  subsequently  a  Mr. 
Ollison  erected  a  double-cabin,  which  was  dignified  with  the 
title  of  hotel  and  for  years  was  the  only  house  of  accomo- 
dation  afforded  visitors.  The  same  gentleman  afterwards 
erected  a  small  corn  mill,  which  stood  near  or  on  the  site 
of  the  new  mill  now  being  completed  by  Col.  H.  J.  Lamar. 
These  were  the  only  improvements  made  until  after  the 
treaty  of  1821,  and  are  remembered  by  a  number  of  our 
old  citizens.  The  Mclntosh  cabin  and  the  mill,  were  des- 
troyed by  fire;  what  became  of  the  hotel  which  stood  upon 
the  site  of  the  north  end  of  the  Varner  House,  we  cannot 
state. 

The  "spell"  was  broken,  and  both  races  pitched  their 
tents  around  the  Spring  annually  for  a  number  of  years, 
mingling  without  open  hostility.  Watson  and  Fitzpatrick 
continued  to  act  as  scouts  for  the  Government,  making  the 
Mclntosh  cabin  headquarters.  Among  the  visitors  were 
Messrs.  Dred  and  Jonathan  Phillips,  of  Jasper  county, 
who  brought  a  friend  that  had  been  afflicted  with  rheuma- 
tism, and  unable  to  walk  for  years.  A  short  stay  served  to 
restore  the  affllicted  to  his  original  health,  when  the  party 
returned  to  their  homes.  While  here  the  Phillips  brothers 
observed  the  excellent  condition  of  the  Indian  stock,  which 
was  attributed  to  the  superabundance  of  cane  then  covering 
the  extensive  bottoms,  and,  as  a  speculation,  brought  over 
a  large  drove  of  cattle  to  pasture,  which  was  left  in  the 
canebrake,  but  occasionally  visited  to  be  salted  and  in- 


360  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

spected.    Subsequently  this  movement  was  interfered  with, 
as  we  shall  show. 

FIRST  OUTBREAK. 

The  rival  factions  of  the  Creeks  were  severally  headed 
by  Melntosh  and  Napothlehatchie — the  latter  termed  Big 
Warrior.  Another  leader  with  the  Big  Warrior  clan  was 
Hopoethleyoholo,  who  was  said  to  have  been  the  most  bril- 
liant orator  of  the  tribe.  Through  his  influence  the  largest 
number  of  the  tribe  joined  Big  Warrior,  and  he  subse- 
quently took  an  active  part  in  opposing  the  treaties  of  1821 
and  1825,  concluded  at  Indian  Spring.  Notwithstanding 
the  factions  were  bitterly  opposed  to  each  other,  we  have 
no  record  of  any  outbreak  occurring  until  1807.  The  Phil- 
lips brothers  were  also  left  undisturbed  in  their  pursuit. 
The  first  disturbance  occurred  in  June,  1807,  when  Big 
Warrior,  with  a  party  of  his  braves,  entered  the  stables  of 
Melntosh  at  night  and  stole  all  his  horses.  The  same  party 
also  carried  off  the  Phillips  cattle.  When  advised  of  their 
loss,  the  Phillips  brothers  gathered  their  neighbors,  and, 
on  being  joined  by  Watson  and  Fitzpatrick,  pursued  and 
overtook  the  plunderers  about  seventy  miles  lower  down  the 
Ocmulgee.  After  a  desperate  conflict  the  stock  was  recov- 
ered and  Hopoethleyoholo  made  prisoner.  This  brave  re- 
fused to  smoke  the  pipe  of  peace  with  his  captors,  and 
actually  spat  in  the  face  of  the  leader  of  the  whites,  who 
tendered  the  symbol  of  peace.  This  act  aroused  the  ire  of 
the  whites,  who  were  with  difficulty  persuaded  by 
Watson  to  spare  his  life.  The  discussion  among  the  whites 
was  suddenly  disturbed  by  Big  Warrior,  who  rushed  in 
with  his  followers,  who  had  been  reinforced,  and  recaptured 
the  favorite  orator.  During  this  second  brief  struggle 
Dred  Phillips  was  shot  through  the  fleshy  part  of  the  left 
arm.  The  cattle  were  then  driven  back  to  the  canebrakes 
of  the  Big  Sandy,  and  again  apparent  quiet  was  the  rule. 

But  the  fires  of  hatred  were  only  smothered  in  the 
breast  of  Big  Warrior.  Watson  and  his  companions  were 
conversant  with  the  machinations  of  the  unfriendly  chief, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  361 

and  anticipated  an  outbreak  against  both  the  whites  and 
Mclntosh  party,  but  no  opportunity  occurred,  and  all  re- 
mained quiet  until  the  war  of  1812  was  inaugurated.  In 
this  war  the  Mclntosh  party — which  had  been  gradually 
gaining  strength — joined  with  the  forces  of  the  State  and 
Government,  and  Big  Warrior  united  with  the  public 
enemy.  The  struggle  in  Georgia  during  the  war  was  bitter, 
and  involved  the  loss  of  many  whites  as  well  as  friendly 
Indians,  and  a  heavy  expense  to  the  State.  Upon  the 
declaration  of  peace  between  Great  Britain  and  the  United 
States,  peace  again  reigned  in  Georgia. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  the  whites  again  began  to  re- 
sort to  the  Spring,  and  the  sick  were  gathered  from  all 
quarters.  The  fame  of  the  waters  spread,  and  the  wonder- 
ful cures  effected  appeared  more  like  the  result  of  magic 
than  the  effects  of  one  of  nature's  great  restorers.  In  1816, 
Mrs.  C.  H.  Varner,  who  yet  lives  in  our  midst,  spent  some 
time  here ;  and  the  scenes  of  primitive  beauty  and  interest 
she  then  looked  upon,  and  also  the  incidents  that  occurred, 
are  distinctly  remembered  by  the  venerable  lady,  as  if  it 
were  but  yesterday.  Gen.  John  W.  Gordon  first  visited  the 
Spring  in  1819,  and  continued  to  spend  a  large  portion 
of  his  time  here  every  year  until  his  death.  During  the 
sojourns  of  this  gentleman  at  Indian  Spring,  he  contributed 
largely  to  the  improvements  that  were  made ;  and  especial- 
ly was  his  generosity,  through  a  long  series  of  years,  ex- 
hibited for  the  benefit  of  the  needy  and  afflicted.  At  his 
decease  he  left  numbers  at  Indian  Springs  who  will  ever 
bless  his  memory  for  the  fruits  of  the  seeds  of  kindness  he 
was  constantly  in  the  habit  of  sowing. 

Among  the  early  visitors  was  the  veritable  "Simon 
Suggs,"  who  subsequently  became  distinguished  as  a  wit 
and  humorist.  Douglass  Walton,  in  his  capacity  of  Gov- 
ernment scout,  continued  to  make  his  headquarters  here. 
In  1819,  Mr.  Jesse  Jolley,  Mr.  John  Lemon,  and  Mrs.  Free- 
man, with  her  husband  and  family,  located  in  Butts.  The 


362  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

three  first  named  are  still  living,  and  are  among  the  most 
honored  citizens  of  the  county. 

PUBLIC  TREATIES. 

Prior  to  1721,  efforts  were  made  by  the  Government  to 
secure  possession  of  the  lands  in  Georgia  lying  west  of 
the  Ocmulgee.  The  Mclntosh  party  favored  such  a  treaty, 
while  Big  "Warrior  and  his  adherents  opposed  it.  After 
many  consultations  between  the  two  parties,  favorable  con- 
clusions were  arrived  at,  and  the  pipe  of  peace  was  passed. 
Big  Warrior  alone  broke  the  faith  thus  cemented  around  the 
council-fires  of  his  tribe ;  Mclntosh  was  again  faithful,  and 
in  1821,  he  concluded  a  treaty  with  the  agents  of  the 
government,  by  which  the  hunting  grounds  between  the 
Ocmulgee  and  Flint  Rivers  were  forever  ceded  away,  ex- 
cepting a  portion  of  the  Ward  plantation  and  six  hundred 
and  forty  acres  around  the  Spring.  These  reservations  were 
made  by  Mclntosh  for  himself.  The  first  embraced  a  large 
body  of  fertile  land  and  the  second  the  Spring,  the  medical 
properties  of  which  Mclntosh  well  understood.  This  treaty 
was  ratified  in  Washington,  March  2d,  1821. 

This  action  of  Mclntosh  and  his  adherents  aroused  an- 
other feud  between  the  rival  wings  of  the  tribe,  which  ended 
in  a  fierce  battle.  A  heavy  loss  was  sustained  on  both  sides, 
the  Mclntosh  party  suffering  most  severely.  Big  Warrior 
was  slain,  and  thus  his  party  were  left  without  a  leader.  A 
little  later  the  orator  chief  and  Mclntosh  met  and  smoked 
the  calumet.  How  faithless  the  first  named  could  prove  to 
this  solemn  covenant  will  be  shown.  In  1823,  General  Mc- 
lntosh and  Joel  Bailey  erected  the  main  building  of  the 
Indian  Spring  Hotel,  and  opened  it  for  the  reception  of 
visitors.  This  building  is  still  yearly  occupied  for  the 
purposes  originally  intended.  About  the  same  date  other 
improvements  were  made,  and  Indian  Spring  became  a 
favorite  resort  at  that  day.  The  visits  of  the  whites 
increased  rapidly,  and  they  sought  to  secure  residences,  or 
camped  out ;  while  the  Indians,  now  peaceable,  also  flocked 
to  the  "Healing  Water," 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  363 

By  an  agreement,  all  parties  met  at  Indian  Spring  to 
consider  a  second  treaty,  early  in  February,  1825.  The 
Government  agents  were  protected  by  United  States  troops, 
and  large  forces  of  the  opposing  Indian  factions  were  pres- 
ent. The  negotiations  were  conducted  in  the  hotel,  and 
concluded  February  7th,  1825.  Under  this  treaty  all  the 
Indian  possessions  in  Georgia  were  ceded  to  the  whites,  and 
an  early  removal  of  the  tribe  arranged  for. 

The  agency  of  General  Mclntosh  in  bringing  about  this 
treaty  resulted  in  his  death  within  a  few  months.  When 
it  was  announced  that  the  treaty  was  concluded,  Hopoethle- 
yoholo  seized  the  occasion  to  give  vent  to  his  long  pent-up 
wrath.  The  Indians  of  both  the  old  factions  were  present 
in  large  numbers.  All  were  excited.  At  last  the  orator 
chief  mounted  the  large  rock  yet  seen  at  the  south  end  of 
the  Varner  House,  and  gave  vent  to  his  feelings  and  pur- 
poses in  the  following  characteristic  talk: 

''Brothers,  the  Great  Spirit  has  met  here  with  his 
painted  children  of  the  woods  and  their  paleface  brethren. 
I  see  his  golden  locks  in  the  sunbeams ;  he  fans  the  warrior 's 
brow  with  his  wings  and  whispers  sweet  music  in  the 
winds ;  the  beetle  joins  his  hymn  and  the  mocking  bird  his 
song.  You  are  charmed !  Brothers,  you  have  been  deceiv- 
ed! A  snake  has  been  coiled  in  the  shade  and  you  are 
running  into  his  open  mouth,  deceived  by  the  double- 
tongue  of  the  paleface  chief  (Mclntosh),  and  drunk  with 
the  fire-water  of  the  paleface.  Brothers,  the  hunting 
grounds  of  our  fathers  have  been  stolen  by  our  chief  and 
sold  to  the  paleface.  Whose  gold  is  in  his  pouch? 
Brothers,  our  grounds  are  gone,  and  the  plow  of  the  pale- 
face will  soon  turn  up  the  bones  of  our  fathers.  Brothers, 
are  you  tame?  Will  you  submit?  Hopoethleyoholo  says 
no!"  Then  turning  to  Mclntosh,  who  was  standing  with 
the  commissioners  at  a  window  a  few  feet  distant,  he 
continued:  "As  for  you,  double-tongued  snake,  whom  I  see 
through  the  window  of  the  paleface,  before  many  moons 


364  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

have  waned  your  own  blood  shall  wash  out  the  memory  of 
this  hated  treaty.    Brothers,  I  have  spoken. ' ' 

By  this  treaty  the  Spring  became  the  property  of  the 
State  and  the  ceded  land  was  laid  out  in  lots  in  1826,  the 
Commonwealth  reserving  ten  acres  arond  the  Spring  for  the 
benefit  of  her  citizens  then  and  thereafter.  The  act  estab- 
lishing Butts  County  was  passed  in  1826.  The  village  of 
Indian  Spring  was  incorporated  by  legislative  enactment  in 
1837,  and  in  1866,  a  second  act  changed  the  name  to  Mc- 
Intosh  and  extended  the  limits  of  the  incorporation. 

DEATH  OF  MC!NTOSH. 

General  Mclntosh  and  family  removed  to  his  planta- 
tion on  the  Chattahoochee,  and  evidently  rested  secure. 
But  the  avenger  was  on  the  war  path,  and  the  distinguished 
chieftain,  who  had  rendered  the  whites  such  signal  service, 
was  doomed. 

In  compliance  with  the  advice  of  Hopoethleyoholo,  a 
secret  council  was  held,  at  which  one  hundred  braves  were 
selected  to  secure  the  vengeance  desired,  and  these,  headed 
by  the  wily  orator,  set  out  westward.  When  near  his  resi- 
dence, Mclntosh  and  his  son-in-law,  Hawkins,  were  seen  by 
their  hidden  foe  riding  together.  "They  could  then  have 
been  easily  killed,"  says  White's  Statistics,  "but  their  lives 
were  spared  for  the  moment  to  preserve  a  consistency  so 
common  in  all  plans  of  the  Indians.  They  had  determined 
to  kill  Mclntosh  in  his  own  yard,  in  the  presence  of  his 
family,  and  to  let  his  blood  run  upon  the  soil  of  that 
reservation  which  had  been  secured  to  him  by  the  treaty. ' ' 
From  the  same  authority  we  learn  Mclntosh  rode  home 
unconscious  of  danger,  while  the  savages  prepared  for  their 
work.  Lightwood  was  procured  to  fire  the  buildings. 
About  three  o'clock  the  premises  were  surrounded,  and  it 
was  not  until  the  torch  had  been  applied  to  the  outbuildings 
that  the  sleepers  were  aroused.  Chilly  Mclntosh,  the  chief's 
son — who  is  yet  living — escaped  through  a  window  of  one 
of  the  outhouses,  and,  running  the  gauntlet,  swam  the 
river.  General  Mclntosh,  upon  discovering  his  assailants, 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  365 

barricaded  the  door  arid  stood  near  it  when  it  was  forced. 
He  fired  on  them,  and  at  that  moment  one  of  his  steadfast 
friends,  Toma  Tustinugse,  fell  upon  the  threshold  riddled 
with  balls.  The  chief  then  retreated  to  the  second  story, 
with  four  guns  in  his  hand,  which  he  continued  to  discharge 
from  a  window.  He  fought  with  great  courage,  and,  aware 
that  his  end  was  near,  determined  to  sell  his  life  as  dearly 
as  possible.  He  was  at  this  time  the  only  occupant  of  the 
burning  house ;  for  his  two  wives,  Peggy  and  Susannah, 
who  had  been  dragged  into  the  yard,  were  heard  imploring 
the  savages  not  to  burn  him  up,  but  to  get  him  out  of  the 
house,  and  shoot  him,  as  he  was  a  brave  man  and  an  Indian 
like  themselves.  Mclntosh  came  down  to  the  first  floor, 
where  he  fell  pierced  with  many  balls.  He  was  then  seized 
and  dragged  into  the  yard.  While  lying  there,  the  blood 
gushing  from  his  wounds,  he  raised  himself  on  one  arm  and 
surveyed  his  murderers  with  looks  of  defiance,  and  it  was 
while  so  doing  he  was  stabbed  to  the  heart  by  an  Ocfuskee 
Indian.  The  chief  was  scalped  and  the  buildings  plunder- 
ed and  burned.  The  party  then  sought  for  Hawkins, 
whom  they  also  killed.  His  body  was  thrown  into  the 
river. 

AN  INDIAN  ELOPEMENT. 

The  family  of  General  Mclntosh  spent  the  summer  of 
1826,  at  Indian  Spring,  where  his  two  youngest  daughters, 
who  had  been  highly  educated,  spent  their  time  in  associat- 
ing alternately  with  the  dusky  maidens  of  their  tribe  and 
their  palefaced  sisters.  During  the  visit  one  of  the 
sisters  created  a  decided  sensation  by  eloping  with  an  In- 
dian lover.  A  gentleman  now  residing  in  the  vicinity  who 
at  that  time  was  a  little  boy,  whose  parents  were  camped 
at  the  Spring,  was  at  the  Mclntosh  cabin — then  situated  on 
the  lot  north  of  the  Varner  Hotel — when  the  occurrence 
took  place.  There  were  hundreds  of  Indians  camped  on 
the  adjacent  hills — the  friendly  party  on  the  south  side 
of  the  creek  and  the  adherents  of  Hypoethleyoholo  on  the 
north  bank.  The  lover  was  a  leading  chief  of  the  latter 


366  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

party,  and  the  match  was  bitterly  opposed  by  the  Mclntosh 
family  and  their  adherents  who  keenly  remembered  the 
sad  events  of  the  previous  year ;  but  the  young  lovers,  who 
had  long  since  determined  upon  their  course,  cared  not  for 
opposition  and  well  arranged  their  plans. 

On  a  bright  Sunday  morning  our  little  white  friend — 
now  an  aged  and  respected  citizen — was  swinging  in  the 
cabin  with  the  two  girls  when  an  unusual  commotion  in 
the  yard  attracted  the  attention  of  all,  and  they  rushed  to 
the  door.  The  young  girl's  favorite  pony  was  hitched  out- 
side. Coming  up  the  hill  from  the  creek  was  seen  the 
determined  lover,  mounted,  and  accompanied  by  a  score  of 
his  braves.  On  seeing  him  approach,  his  intended  rushed 
into  the  cabin,  and,  amidst  the  tears  and  vehement  protes- 
tations of  her  mother  and  sister,  who  were  weeping  bitterly, 
she  rapidly  cast  off  the  habiliments  of  civilization  and  ar- 
rayed herself  in  a  complete  Indian  costume.  This  accomp- 
lished, she  turned  to  her  weeping  friends,  and  after  much 
talk  in  the  language  of  her  tribe,  she  embraced  them  with- 
out shedding  a  tear,  and  rushed  out,  kissing  her  little 
friend,  who  was  gazing  upon  the  scene  with  wonder.  The 
lover  and  his  escort  were  drawn  up  near  the  gate;  not  a 
word  was  said,  and  the  girl  sprang  upon  her  pony  and 
took  her  place  in  the  line  behind  her  intended.  Silently 
the  party  then  moved  down  the  hill,  crossed  the  creek,  and 
were  soon  out  of  sight.  They  were  legally  married  at 
Lawrenceville,  Gwinnett  County,  Georgia,  and  the  union 
was  a  happy  and  prosperous  one. — Jackson,  (Go,.,}  Argus. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  367 


TRACING  THE  M'INTOSH  TRAIL. 

The  Mclntosh  trail  begins  as  far  west  as  Talladega,  Ala., 
and  perhaps  further,  going  eastward  3  miles  above  Senoia, 
in  Coweta  County,  Georgia,  where  it  diverges,  one  trail 
going  to  Augusta  and  the  other  via  Indian  Springs  to 
Macon.  Mrs.  Yeandle  has  traced  the  trail  from  Augusta  to 
Senoia.  Perhaps  some  daughter  will  trace  it  to  Macon 
from  its  point  of  divergence.  I  am  tracing  it  west  from 
the  neighborhood  of  Senoia  to  Talladega,  Ala.  The  trail 
runs  about  3  miles  north  of  Senoia,  and  near  there  Mc- 
lntosh built  a  fort,  the  ruins  of  which  may  still  be  seen. 
Senoia  was  given  the  name  of  a  princess  of  the  Cowetas. 
Her  name  is  about  all  that  remains  of  her,  her  history  being 
buried  in  oblivion.  The  trail  runs  north  of  Turin,  crosses 
Hegg  Creek  near  the  home  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Rees,  then 
through  Sharpsburg,  north  of  Raymond,  following  part  of 
the  old  Mclntosh  road  entering  Newnan  on  the  southeast, 
down  Greenville  street  across  Mrs.  Atkinson's  lot  to  La- 
Grange  street,  across  Miss  Long's  lot  and  a  livery  stable 
lot  into  Spring  street.  The  direct  route  is  here  uncertain, 
because  of  home-building,  but  it  crosses  the  Central  Rail- 
road into  Roy  Pork,  on  to  an  unusual  road  called  Rocky 
road,  which  leads  over  a  creek  to  the  Chattahoochee,  where 
it  crosses  the  river  west  of  the  Mclntosh  reserve.  The 
reserve  is  a  square  mile  in  a  sharp  bend  of  the  river,  and 
on  both  sides  of  'the  Chattahoochee,  being  partly  in  Carroll 
County  and  party  in  Coweta,  and  at  this  bend  the  river 
runs  for  some  distance  west  instead  of  south.  On  the 
Carroll  side  the  Chief  Mclntosh  had  his  home,  and  there 
he  was  murdered  by  his  race,  in  1826.  And  there  he  is 
buried.  The  trail  now  runs  almost  due  west  across  the 
southern  part  of  Carroll  County,  Georgia,  and  across  the 
northern  parts  of  Clay  and  Randolph  Counties,  Alabama, 
into  Talladega  County,  to  the  town  of  Talladega.  This 
part  of  the  trail  is  more  certain  than  elsewhere,  because  the 
pioneers  blazed  the  trail,  cutting  three  notches  into  the 


368  REVOLUTIONARY  READER 

numerous  trees  of  the  unbroken  forest.  Over  this  trail 
Andrew  Jackson  marched  his  troops  against  the  British  in 
1812-13-14-15,  Mclntosh  and  his  force  going  with  him.  The 
forests  have  gone  down  before  the  fields,  and  here  is  per- 
haps the  finest  white  yeomanry  in  Georgia.  It  is  considered 
that  they  produce  the  finest  short  staple  cotton  in  the  world. 
Schools  and  churches  abound  and  the  population  is  fast 
advancing  in  culture.  But  to  take  up  the  trail  again:  It 
leaves  the  reserve,  going  through  Lowell,  thence  to  Tyrus 
by  Mexico  campground ;  then  one-half  mile  north  of  Black 
Jack  mountain  through  Buchanan  town  into  Alabama,  one- 
half  mile  north  of  Gratan  postoffice  by  Bethel  campground. 
Then  crossing  the  little  Tallapoosa  on  Saxon's  bridge  near 
Saxon's  mill,  on  the  Big  Tallapoosa,  where  it  crosses  at 
Ridley's  bridge  through  Chillafinnee,  then  goes  on  north  of 
Ironton  to  Talladega,  Alabama.  Perhaps  this  trail  goes 
further  west  than  Talladega,  but  an  effort  to  trace  it  has 
failed  so  far.  Our  Chapter  still  hopes  to  find  whether  it 
continues.  No  doubt  the  whole  country  was  a  network  of 
trails,  and  this  must  antedate  the  time  of  Mclntosh.  It 
must  go  back  to  the  days  when  the  Indians  had  no  beasts 
of  burden. — MRS.  R.  H.  HARDAWAY,  Newnan,  Ga. 


REMINISCENCES  AND  INDIAN  LEGENDS  369 


GEORGIA  SONG. 

I 

Blest  is  thy  land,  fair  Georgia; 
From  the  mountains  to  the  sea. 
The  purpose  of  whose  founders  was 
The  opprest  from  wrongs  to  free. 

REFRAIN  : 

Then  hail  to  thee,  our  Georgia! 

For  of  the  "Old  Thirteen" 
No  brighter  star  shone  ever, 
Or  ever  shall  be  seen. 

II 

"Not  for  themselves,  but  others," 
Was  the  way  their  motto  ran; 
And  in  the  path  of  mercy 
Did  they  early  lead  the  van. 

Ill 

Our  fathers  sought  the  "new  world," 
With  a  motive  grand  and  high, 

And  faith  in  God  hath  ever 
Led  our  hopes  unto  the  sky. 

IV. 

And  so  on  strong  foundations, 
We  see  stately  columns  rise, 

As  symbols  of  those  virtues, 
That  our  Georgia  people  prize. 

V. 

A  soldier  guards  the  portals 
While  a  sunburst  from  above, 

Illumines  arch  and  pillars 

With  God's  all  protecting  love. 

VI 

God  grant  our  solons  Wisdom, 
Let  strict  Justice  hold  the  scale 

And  Moderation  guide  the  hand, 
That  must  make  the  law  prevail. 
—By  J.  T.  Derry. 


370  EEVOLUTIONABY  READER 

Many  of  the  states  have  a  state  song  for  the  school  children. 
Georgia  has  never  yet  had  one.  There  are  efforts  being  made  to 
supply  this  deficiency. 

The  founders  of  the  colony  of  Georgia  had  a  threefold  purpose : 

First — To  provide  a  home  for  the  honest  debtor  class  of  Great 
Britain,  so  that  in  the  new  world  they  might  have  a  new  chance. 

Second — To  offer  to  persecuted  sects  of  Europe  a  refuge  form 
oppression. 

Third — -To  oppose  a  barrier  against  Spanish  aggression  upon 
the  colony  of  South  Carolina. 

The  raising  of  silk  and  indigo  were  to  be  the  chief  industries 
of  the  new  colony.  The  trustees  were  to  make  for  themselves  no 
profit  out  of  their  enterprises.  Hence  on  one  side  of  the  seal 
adopted  for  the  colony  of  Georgia  by  the  trustees  was  a  represen- 
tation of  silk  worms  busy  at  their  work  and  the  motto  was:  "Non 
sibi,  Sed  Aliis,"  which  means,  "Not  for  themselves,  but  for  others." 

When  Georgia  became  a  state  a  seal  was  adopted  on  the 
front  side  of  which  are  represented  three  columns,  marked : 
"Wisdom,  Justice,  Moderation,"  which  support  the  arch  of  the 
constitution.  On  arch  and  pillar  shine  the  rays  of  the  rising  sun. 
A  soldier  with  drawn  sword  guards  the  approaches. 

With  these  two  seals,  one  of  the  colony  and  the  other  of  the 
state  as  the  inspiration,  the  above  song  has  been  suggested,  the 
words  being  by  Professor  J.  T.  Derry  and  the  music  by  Mrs. 
Albert  T.  Spalding,  both  of  Atlanta,  Ga. 


